Undisclosed Desires
by Narushi-sama
Summary: Erwin/Levi (eruri), mature content, porn, etc. Erwin Smith, the young and very respected owner of Survey company, wasn't entirely new to porn streams, needless to say, he wasn't new to spending his money on entertainment like this. But what happens when he tries to watch Streams with a tiny male who happens to have the nastiest tongue ever? Levi.
1. Chapter 1

**Undisclosed Desires**

_So, I've been away for quite some time and now I'm kinda back with another story. This is just something quick that I wrote and I will probably continue with this, even though it sounds good as a one-shot as well. Attack on Titan season three part two is out now and I have all the feels crushing my mind like crazy, that's why I wanted to write this so much. Hope you will like it, please leave reviews!_

**1.**

Was it okay to look at these websites? What if someone found out? Was it okay to dive deep into the waters of his unsolved desires? He didn't know but covered the webcam on his computer with tape anyway, and turned off his microphone before entering the stream with a young man who was just getting naked. Lean body with defined muscles, black hair with undercut, coal gray eyes piercing the camera with force so strong it could kill literally anyone. The man looked so intimidating, yet he was so tiny it didn't work really well altogether. But Erwin somehow thought he was cute. It had been a while since he felt the urge to masturbate, and it had been even longer since he had a boner just from looking at someone. So when he logged into that stream for the very first time, he had no expectations whatsoever. But a huge strike of desire assaulted his insides when he looked at the man on the other side of the network. There was something undeniably hot and familiar about his presence, so much that he was getting hard just by looking at the screen. And for the first time in a long lost history, Erwin felt a wave of pleasure filling up his body it made him almost cum.

Erwin Smith, the young and very respected owner of Survey company, wasn't entirely new to porn streams, needless to say he wasn't new to spending his money on entertainment like this, because with his insane amount of work, he hadn't been able to relax, so this was his only way of doing it. Still, he sure was new to porn streams with another male, for he usually paid for girls but it hadn't been really working for him anymore. Slowly, he lost the attraction towards females, not that he suddenly stopped liking women, but his preference was surely elsewhere, he just couldn't admit the fact that girls no longer were able to warm him up. Caught up in a moment, Erwin almost forgot to answer the nice guy on the other side of the wire, who sat on his bed, legs wide open as if he was practicing his middle split, and throwing his chin at the camera with clear anticipation in his eyes that resembled the rainy sky.

"So, where's your face and voice? Haven't got any, fucker? Or are you just as ugly as I think you are? Or maybe some higher-up hetero who's too ashamed of his own preferences, are we? Don't waste your fucking money on me if you're not willing to take chances and risk something in return for the best night of your worthless life."

As the other guy spoke, taken aback by his nasty tongue, Erwin checked his profile info to find out who he was actually giving his money to.

_Levi. _

Rather young, he seemed to be in his early twenties, very small, yet quite confident. There were photos of him that Erwin thought were a little too neat for someone who was a whore but he scrolled through them anyway just out of curiosity. Another thing that caught his attention was a number of followers this guy had. It was insanely high as if people actually found amusement in his nasty talking and his honest personality. Something, that Erwin thought he would hate. They were so different it could even be a crime to meet like that. After a moment the blond typed his answer without showing off his face, name or voice. He wanted to be anonymous.

_Hello, I'd rather stay anonymous, if you don't mind, what you certainly don't because you might be disappointed in what you would see. Or not, I leave that to your imagination, it's a part of how I deal with this, let the imagination flow through your mind. Also, strip completely and start touching yourself. Now. It's an order, obey it. _

He could see Levi leaning closer to his computer to read his message, he could see Levi furrowing his perfectly shaped thin eyebrows, and then he could see Levi getting back on the bed. And when he spoke again, he stole Erwin's breath right underneath his mouth.

"So fucker, maybe you're paying and maybe you've been used to some other people who were getting treated like shit and still were happy about themselves. But talk to me that way again and be sure I will fucking find you and kill the shit out of you so much that you'll wish you'd be dead ten times over before I finish with you. Are we fucking clear?" But as he spoke, his long fingers undid the cravat around his neck, throwing it shamelessly on the floor, then moving slowly down to his white pants, the belt clicked in the silence and pierced the thickness hanging in the air. Erwin couldn't take his eyes off Levi, who had stolen all his ability to think, and as his elegant hands moved provocatively down to hook his fingers to the hem of his pants, the blond stopped breathing for a moment. The fabric slowly rubbed against his bare thighs and disappeared down between his ankles as he proceeded to strip. Then Levi kicked it off with disinterest, leaving only the white boxers encircling his manhood. The fantasy spilled inside of Erwin's mind, forcing him to think about what it would be like to touch those exposed parts of the raven's body. How it would feel like if his own fingertips examined the unknown landscape of someone who made him into a puddle full of lust with just so little effort, and he reached out to the hem of his sweatpants to free his penis. The monster waiting to be unleashed rested in his broad palm, full of anticipation and madness of the soul, which played the melody of unknown attraction. Levi. The guy was more than Erwin wanted to admit.

He gave his throbbing length a few strokes before leaning closer to his laptop to write another message for Levi all the while looking at the screen as if there was a new cure for humanity's stupidity discovered. The other man didn't look like he cared about the message, and although he clearly read it, he didn't let it disturb him in any way. He had a way of knowing what would fit Erwin's needs the most, but for him to be that attentive from the very beginning was something utterly new for the blond. No wonder he was taken aback by it, pre-cum already leaking on the tip of his own cock as he saw Levi bending over his bed to give him the best view ever possible while slowly taking off his boxers.

_You're amazing, Levi. _

As much as Erwin wanted to tell Levi what he should do to make him feel the heat more, he didn't have to do anything, because the raven already knew. That strange feeling rising in the back of his head was getting a little too noticeable and he couldn't swallow it. The guy on the other side of the network just seemed so familiar it almost scared him. Erwin just couldn't recall when or where was it that he met him. Narrowing his gaze to the screen more, he spat in his palm, leaned back in the chair so he could envelop fingers around his pleading manhood, and after a while filled the room with the music of his mellow moans, complementing the silent, wet slapping noises that accelerated every second.

Levi put his boxers away, knelt on the bed and slowly lowered his chest to the cushions, pushing his butt up to give Erwin another good spectacle. He spread his legs and turned his head over the shoulder a little so the observer could see his whole face filled with desire, cheek pressed on the pillow so harshly it made him look almost cute. Sliding one finger slowly into his mouth to make it wet while looking right into the camera made the blond's cock twitch in anticipation, and then Levi moved to his backdoor and slid the finger in with a soft whimper attacking Erwin's ears.

"Fuck me hard so the only word I know is your name." The hoarse voice followed the little moans burning on Levi's lips, and as it disappeared into the night, he added a second finger to the party, shoving it in harshly. The blue orbs of his watcher's eyes were shining in the dim light coming from the computer, creating an abyss of undisclosed desire that couldn't be fulfilled.

_As you command, Levi, it would be my pleasure. _

A quick response written with one hand, the other one being occupied with work on his length. Sloppy and rushed movements that didn't actually go well with the neat looking businessman, cracked moans of the upcoming climax. Their voices melting together like ice cream on a warm summer day, the perturbing need, the nerve-wracking distance, the unsaid pleading for more. And then the call.

Erwin's phone buzzed for the third time when he finally realized someone had been desperately trying to get his attention. Without reaching a needed peak, he jerked in his chair with surprise and cursed. Quickly shutting down the Stream while clumsily trying to wipe his pre-cum and spit off of his hand, he answered the phone call with a little too much urgency. And as the person on the other side spoke, he tried to catch a breath and find his usual composure again.

"I'm sorry, what was it that you called for? I think the reception here is a little bit off, I couldn't hear you properly. Would you be so nice to repeat it again?" His dick slowly softening as he watched the screen of his computer showing just one plain sentence.

_The Stream has ended. _

Leaving Levi to his own faith and destiny, he thought about how he had lost so much more than just a good night wanking. He sighed.

TBC...


	2. Chapter 2

**2.**

Erwin had troubles sleeping, he woke up at four o'clock in the morning and hadn't been able to fall asleep since then, so after a good wasted hour of trying he got up at five and went to work early. In the spare time, he finished a few assignments and when the first employees showed up, he was already at his fifth cup of coffee.

*/*/*

"You look absolutely terrible, Erwin. You should go home and sleep, I don't want you to pass out before the day ends, really." Hange pointed out sorely at the end of one meeting, looking directly to Erwin's tired eyes. It was almost eight o'clock in the evening and the day went by smoothly at first, but with every other passing hour, Erwin felt as if a huge boulder was sitting on his stomach slowly crushing his insides. He mindlessly rubbed his belly and waved Hange a goodbye with an apologetic smile slightly forming on his lips. She clearly wanted to say more, but before she could even start, Erwin shut the door of his office and headed to his desk. It wasn't just tiredness that attacked his body and soul, the issue to be that simple was just impossible, because when the stress came into his life with a little more force, he always ended up with the same symptoms. His stomach felt like it was being crushed by rocks, and a weird pain twitched in his right arm. On top of that, he lacked sleep, for nightmares were silently laughing at his exhausted face. He felt like he was surviving through a long war he had never known.

Erwin toppled into his chair and reached out to his phone, and because it kept on buzzing during the day with an enormous amount of calls, he had to deal with this before leaving home. Sighing heavily, he dialed a needed number and waited for the response.

"Hello? Yes, this is Erwin Smith talking, you called earlier to set an appointment. Yes, of course. I'll be available on September 18th at 15:00 o'clock. Yes, I will email you the address, thank you for choosing our company. Have a nice evening, bye."

And just as Erwin hung up, he lay down on the desk and hid his head in the crook of his crossed arms, muttering silently to himself about the need for coffee. He was so tired that he hadn't even noticed the opening door of his office and the clack of heels belonging to one of the employees.

"Mr. Smith?" There was an uncertain voice coming from the entrance, where a young woman stood with a perhaps too much of cleavage, holding a plate of biscuits in her hands. With a gentle smile complemented by a blush on her cheeks, she entered the room completely.

"Hm? What is it, Lissie?" Erwin asked gently, straightening up on his chair so he didn't look that much exhausted. Lissie was Mike's new secretary, who came to their company just two months ago, and even though she was assigned to another department, she had been visiting Erwin almost daily without having any sort of business with him whatsoever.

"Uhm.. I brought some homemade cookies. J-just for you, Mr. Smith." She said with her blush deepening and placed the plate on Erwin's desk who smiled at her and nodded with "thank you" falling from his lips.

"Uhm, Mr. Smith… " She tried to catch his attention once again, but before she could say anything more, another voice showed up right behind her, making her flinch in surprise, Lissie looked over her shoulder to meet with a dead glare of another employee who certainly tried to kill her just with her eyes.

"Erwin." She called coldly, her familiar tone forced Lissie to step back a little bit, an awkward feeling occurring in her mind, she tried to flash a smile at the woman but all she received was a cold shoulder.

"Cover up those huge boobs, would you? I don't want to be the one who catches them when they fall from your chest. It's inappropriate. Please dress as a secretary and not as a cheap woman, nobody's buying the act here."

Lissie's mouth fell open with disbelief, she whimpered a quick goodbye and ran out of Erwin's office, who looked so tired that he didn't even notice the little catfight between the two. He raised his head when Erika came closer and placed a little box of pills in front of him.

"Did you bring the sleeping pills, Erika? " Erwin slowly stood up, and while he was packing up his things, Erika spoke. She was from a family of doctors, currently working with Hange on all kinds of studies in the company, but in the meantime, she also helped Erwin with his medicine, when his health started to crumble a little bit. This wasn't his first time, those flashback, visions, and pain appeared repeatedly, but no illness was detected so everyone thought it was due to overwork.

"Hange sent me, she's worried about you, you know. Go home and rest. And take one of these, you need to sleep."

Erwin grabbed his things and patted Erika on her shoulder, smiling, "thank you," he said again and left the place, leaving Erika stunned by his gratitude and with a soft "you're welcome," dying on her lips.

*/*/*

It was eleven o'clock in the evening when Erwin finally arrived home. He lived in a modern area with tall buildings and his apartment was on the top floor so when the night came, he had one of the most beautiful views in the city. Just like today.

Locking his door, he put his stuff away and went straight to the computer. He knew what he was looking for, but doubted he could find it this late at night but logged in to a certain website anyway. To his surprise, the first thing he saw was an invitation to follow Levi's profile. He remembered shutting down the stream so quickly that he had no time to follow him or anything else. He clicked to accept the offer and opened his profile info to find out he was offering a private stream. Without any hesitation Erwin hurriedly and almost excitedly opened the link, filled out the number of his card and logged into the stream.

"Oi, fucker," Levi spoke without even looking at the screen of his own computer, he was completely naked and he seemed to work on sewing a cloth that had been torn in half. He probably didn't know who just visited his little fantasy place but Erwin didn't mind now, cause he felt a little guilty for what had happened yesterday.

Levi's long fingers slowly and precisely fixing a broken piece that no one would care about anymore, his lean yet quite muscular back facing the camera, his butt cheeks resting in the duvets. Erwin loved it. He was staring stupidly with lips parted, and a soft sigh escaped his insides as a reminder that this guy didn't have to even try to get his attention, and yet he was the one who had made Erwin's blood boil and the one who had attacked his mind, so there was no other place for anyone else. After quite a while, Levi finished his sewing and put it away so he could turn to the camera to see if the person is still there or not. Erwin didn't mind waiting, he was perfectly fine with Levi being a seamstress as long as he could watch him. But once the raven took a proper look at the screen and Erwin's nickname, he frowned and pierced his coal gray eyes right into the little lens of his camera.

"You listen to me, fucker. I know who you are and I perfectly remember your quick departure yesterday. I don't care that you've already paid me, just get the fuck lost, I'm not some kind of a joke you can kick in the ass when you're bored. Find yourself a silly girl who will bring you fucking cookies to your fucked up messy office and will try to make you happy with everything she's got, 'cause you have, indeed, money. I'm not making a fool of myself again, not a chance, fucker." Levi uttered coldly, his tone as dangerous as a sharp dagger. He was so close to the screen that Erwin could almost feel his breath on his face, and even though he was seriously rude, the blond ended up with the biggest boner he had ever had in his life. There was clearly something wrong with him.

"Tch!" Levi sighed in exasperation when he received no answer from the other side of the connection. The depth of the abyss between them seemed to grow with every other silent second in which no words were spoken. Just a stuck breath in his throat, deep blue irises of his eyes shining somewhere in the distant past he might have once inhabited. But now, however, totally lost in a world that wasn't his own, he turned on his computer microphone and spoke the name, which had been rolling on his lips ever since yesterday.

_"Levi ..."_

And Levi paused with his hand outstretched to the camera, his plan to turn off the stream failing. With eyes wide open, he leaned back and threw his chin at Erwin as if to say "speak."

"I'm very sorry I left without any sort of explanation, Levi. It was an emergency and there was nothing I could do about it." His voice carried through the air straight to Levi, who stared into the camera but couldn't see his companion himself. Just his voice was present. It was only after a few long seconds he took a breath and answered the unknown man, whose voice was as fierce as a raging fire. It felt as if someone was tapping on Levi's skin with thousands of daggers as if a strange force embraced him and didn't want to let go. His voice, which seemed so familiar, was strong and without any doubts. And the raven found himself being attracted to it.

"An emergency, my ass! That late in the night? You should teach your buddies to behave, fucker. It'll take more than that to make me believe you. I'm not as cheap as you may think I am." Getting right back on track from his stunned moment, Levi glared into the lens and turned his back on Erwin as if showing he didn't care about his shitty excuses. Erwin sat in his chair, still and silent, roaming his eyes through the beautiful fields of Levi's naked body. There was no helping it, he was addicted and he didn't even understand the pressure showing up in the back of his head again. As if the raven was at fault somehow, there was something more to that guy that he ever wanted to admit. There was this little piece of Levi with him that came to life yesterday but it seemed to him that he had always had this little thing inside, it just waited for the right moment in his life to wake up. Erwin had a feeling he had known him for eternity.

"Yes, an emergency. It was an important business call which I couldn't ignore. But I'm shutting my phone down now so nothing can really bother me anymore. And I will stay with you until the end of your stream tonight. That's all I can offer, Levi." As Erwin spoke, Levi looked like he took his words into consideration because he stopped moving and gazed over his shoulder to meet with Erwin's blue abysses, which he couldn't see, but there was this brief moment that seemed like they were looking into each other's eyes. And then a light twitch of the raven's lips appeared as he finally made up his mind.

"So, do you have any idea what you got yourself into, fucker?" Levi asked solemnly.

"Did I just sign a contract with the devil itself, maybe?" A light smile could be heard in the blond's voice as he spoke openly to Levi, who just disappeared from the screen for a moment. When he returned, he held a cup of a black tea in his hand, and Erwin somehow thought it was an inconvenient way to hold a cup because he wasn't using his handle as if he was scared it might break.

"Pretty much," Levi answered dryly and took a sip of his tea from the cup, it looked a little awkward but Erwin liked it nonetheless. Smiling like a crazy old man, he sighed and began to talk shamelessly to Levi, his words flowing as naturally as a wind singing tender melodies through the trees somewhere in a faraway land.

"I wanted to stay anonymous because it would cause me trouble if someone found out about this, but I think I messed that up by revealing my voice. I had a feeling it's necessary to speak to you because I really didn't want you to be mad at me, and talking is the best way to be more on a personal level. So, do you like tea or coffee?"

"Fucker, that's a black tea, coffee is for shitmagnets." The honesty interwoven in Levi's voice was amusing, and as Erwin thought he would hate his edgy personality at first, he got addicted to it instead.

"I love coffee." Erwin pointed out maybe too wholeheartedly so he sounded like a total fool because obviously, he didn't care about being called a magnet for shit.

"Then you're a shitmagnet. Easy." Levi simply said, shrugging and sipping his tea. Still naked, he sat on a chair and moved the camera down a little so Erwin could see his entire body. With one leg resting on the table and the other one in a casual position, he slowly slid his hand to his crotch and squeezed his half-hard manhood firmly.

"Just listening to your voice makes me hard, bastard. It's fucking hot." The smaller guy whispered as he threw his head back and gave his throbbing cock another rigorous squeeze.

But he obviously did not expect Erwin's reaction, for when a trembling sigh filled with smoldering excitement came on the other side of the microphone, he widened his eyes and stopped his movement. At first, there were no signs of words, just the restrained moan that showed Levi a total soul madness that Erwin was undeniably suffering from.

"Levi…" A quiet voice diving in the waves of unremitting need convinced the raven that he had just hit a gold mine hiding behind the voice of an unknown man who was spending the evening with him. On the other side of the stream was someone who chose his company, someone who was apparently lonely. And even though he was used to having guys like that pretty often, Erwin was somehow different. As the silent game went on, the blond spoke again, this time with more pressure hiding in his voice as if he was holding back something.

"Make me cum, Levi, please…"

And Levi obeyed his words to the very last letter that had been spoken.

He leaned back in the chair, put his teacup away, and touched his throat first, went down to his stomach and crotch where he grabbed his penis and began to work on it slowly. Gazing up at the camera while panting made Erwin's cock yank, but the blond didn't touch it just yet, he wanted to enjoy Levi to the fullest. His own voice hoarse and rusty, he moved closer to the microphone and silently moaned into it, making Levi return the favor right away but with far more volume.

"Damn, Levi. You're so incredibly sexy. I've never seen anyone like you." Yet another sentence which was completed by another low pitch moan.

"Stop talking crap and start with the actual act already, fucker. Or else I'm gonna cum all over the camera without you."

With that being said, Erwin undid his fly and finally freed his little monster waiting to get some attention. The tension that had built up was almost unbearable so when he gave his painfully hard length a stroke, a shaky breath of insane desire fell from his lips, forcing Levi to fasten the pace. His head fell back again, his lips parted, his body jerking up every time he thrust against his own hand. Erwin was hooked, his own hand increasing the speed, and all Levi had to do was to exist. The thing that got him so messed up was the fact that the smaller man didn't even have to try to make a good impression. He didn't care and Erwin found that incredibly intriguing.

Another needed moan escaped Levi's lips and it caused Erwin's penis to accumulate even more blood, leaving a slight glint of precum at his tip. He was so impatient yet he didn't want this moment to end, scrutinizing with the thumb the head of his cock, he felt it coming closer and closer. The madness of his soul crawling through his chest and throat into the silent world around him, his voice of pleasure dinging in the night air as Levi's name melted on his dry lips once, then twice. A dangerously tilting glass of his sanity overflowed over the edge, throwing him across the deck into the depths of the hell itself. The half-closed eyelids, the quick breath, the slow return to reality, in which were his bluish glances glued to Levi's last moments before the explosion. There was something magical about how his hands were moving fast, dangerously catching every escaped puff of excitement and returning it back to his quivering body. Without thinking about what he was doing, Erwin adjusted the camera so it was aiming at his crotch and turned it on. His hand slowly playing with the sperm between his fingers and his length.

"Come for me, Levi. Look." His voice hit just the right places, the depth of that tone merging into Levi's skin, desire dancing on his lips in another elongated moan that signaled he was close. Levi opened his eyes and stared straight into his monitor, where enormous manhood of a man, whose identity remained hidden under the darkness was staring at him. But the little he had seen was rich enough to make him a living wreck longing for release.

"Come, Levi." Another order, another hard squeeze. And then, as passion bursts to the surface, Levi sprinkled his belly with hot semen.

_"Fuck, uh-hnng."_

*/*/*

Later on in the night, Erwin and Levi had another quick sexual encounter, but between those two actions happened to pass at least a few hours of talking. Levi still naked laying on his bed, Erwin, without revealing his identity and just with his voice in the background. Something about them was so magnetic that they couldn't resist one another, and just as the blond promised the raven, he stayed until the very end of the Stream. Needless to say, Levi forced him to stay up until four o'clock in the morning.

"That's a fucking punishment for leaving me alone yesterday, fucker. Enjoy your work tomorrow, I hope you won't hit the wall with your head, that would be a shame." Levi snorted while cleaning up his room, which wasn't messy at all.

"I'd like to avoid that." Erwin laughed.

It was the best night of his worthless life, indeed.


	3. Chapter 3

3.

"What the hell, Erwin? You look like shit which was eaten and then pooped again. What happened to you? The sleeping pills Erika gave you didn't work?" Mike visited him the next morning in his office, ready to discuss some of the sponsors with the president as they agreed the day before, but finding Erwin in a state incompatible with living changed his plans completely.

"I didn't have time for the pills, Mike. I'm sorry to worry you, it wasn't my intention at all, but there was something I had to do, that's why I didn't sleep very well. I promise you I will take care of myself."

"You are a bad liar, Erwin. I can smell the fishiness all the way to the end of that hallway. I'm kind of disappointed that you still don't trust me, bud." Mike said with a shrug, directly looking into the blue world of Erwin's eyes, where the eternity of the ocean depth was hidden.

"I promise you I will tell you when the time is right. Until then, please bear with me for a little longer."

*/*/*

But the time flew by and Erwin didn't say a word to anyone about what he had been doing every night under the blanket of the darkness. During these times, he always ended up with Levi on the stream. Sometimes, they would just talk, but sometimes, they would scream their minds out in a long and steamy sexual exchange. Levi would tease Erwin to the point where he thought he was going to explode. And Erwin would murmur into the microphone nasty words so that Levi could obey them and fuck the soul out of himself. However, whenever they chatted, the atmosphere changed drastically, and the blond soon found out Levi wasn't stupid at all. During these little moments, they would always drink tea or coffee, making fun of unimportant stuff, talking about everything that had come into their minds and maybe getting to know each other a little. Levi loved cleanliness, and Erwin liked order. There were more things that brought them together, though. Sometimes, Levi would pause and look into the camera without actually seeing Erwin, and he would say something quite strange as if he wasn't really present, but Erwin would always, _always _understand those words as if they were meant for him and nobody else. There were also times when Levi told him about his dreams.

_"Yea, I have this fucked up dream that is happening almost every other night, it seems like a crappy story but I live inside of a city that's surrounded by huge walls. And on the other side of those walls, there are huge monsters resembling humans, but not quite well. And I'm killing these monsters as I see a weird group of stupid ass people charging into battle against these giants. They have no chance of winning and I hear their battle cry, I hear the sound of the hooves, horses galloping through the field straight to hell. And I can't stop them because it's because of me they're there, dying." _

Those times were very precious to Erwin, he thought he had found a soul that had the power to fill up his emptiness. A soul he had to claim for some reason. A few months had passed since their first stream and it became a habit for both of them.

But one night, Erwin didn't come.

Levi got home early and logged into the usual website, waiting for Erwin to accompany him but he never came. So when the clock turned to midnight, he texted a few of his buddies and went out.

*/*/

At the same time just in another place, Erwin came out of the restaurant with a couple of his colleagues, with whom he spent the whole evening at a working dinner. He, Hange, Nayla, who was his business partner and Erika, who had collaborated on research with Hange, headed for a dark alley near the restaurant to make their way home faster. Erika was very hesitant at the beginning and suggested to go another way, however, both Nayla and Erwin told her that it was a shortcut and there was nothing to worry about. But they didn't even reach the middle of the street when they were surrounded by four strange people. They couldn't see them properly because they were hidden in the shadows, wearing hoodies with capes falling to their eyes and masks covering their faces.

"Give us money or we'll make a cake out of your faces, seriously!" One of them shouted in a dangerous tone, almost razor-sharp.

Erika froze, a fear woven into her face, she looked almost desperate. Nayla's expression, however, changed from a friendly and carefree to a furious fire, unrestrained in its roots and expanding throughout her entire body. Opposite Erika, she was ready to fight.

"Lay just one of your dirty fucked up fingers on us and I'm gonna kick your tiny balls, moron!"

Hange started laughing like a fool, Nayla threatened the attackers, Erika tried to pretend she was a rock. And Erwin stood in front of the entire group, looking at the talking assailant, silent and peaceful. His eyes, however, soon shifted to a smaller stature behind them, which had not yet been revealed. The air was chilling, the claws of darkness stealing the light from their eyes, and the smell of dustbins stinging in the nose. Everything looked surreal, time seeming to creep between the cracked walls at a slow pace that tore apart the mind and trembled the legs with fear. Nayla's words rebounded in the frowning face of a talking man who had taken a few steps in her direction, approaching Erwin dangerously as well.

He was almost as tall as the blond, and when he lifted his head, his eyes shone with the poisonous green in the street light of the old lamp, its flickering white glow alternately dying and rebirthing to reach out to the other ambushers with its rays. The smallest one still hidden in the shadows, seated on one of the railings leading to the escape steps to the upper floors of the building. And when he jumped down, he jerked his head toward Erwin and spoke all the while patting his comrade on the shoulder to stop him in his steps.

"We'll do a deal, you little bastard. You give us the money and you shut up. In return, we'll leave your sweet asses free of any signs of harm. Yes?" The gray clouds reflected in his eyes, the glint of which had smeared Erwin like a blot of ink and attacked his insides. He knew those eyes, as did the voice. Levi, it was Levi. After a while, he raised his hands in resignation and nodded calmly, perhaps his eyes were telling a different story but it was perfectly hidden behind his blond lashes.

"I wouldn't like to get us or you into any kind of trouble, gentlemen." His deep and strong voice had blown the melody through the street like a breath of fresh wind, and Levi's eyes widened in silent shock. The voice that drifted into his bowels was violently similar to the one that had accompanied him on endless pilgrimages for the adventures of his own lust in recent months.

"Ronny, take others and rob them. I'll take this fucker in the front." Levi spoke monotonously while outstretching his hand towards Erwin, he clearly asked for the money. The blond slowly opened his wallet, taking out quite a lot banknotes to hand it over to the raven afterward.

"Here. We won't say anything about it since we don't even know how you look like. It's all I have here. Hange and the others, cooperate." The tone in which he said it, was neat, yet it burned with an undisclosed fire that Levi couldn't ignore. He took the money, touching accidentally Erwin's fingers in the process, his eyes shot immediately up to the taller man's face, holding an uncertain emotion for a brief second but it disappeared in the night almost instantly. His breath hitched a little and he could feel the skin on his hand burning. Suddenly, he wanted to disappear, he wanted to run, he wanted to hide from that piercing gaze Erwin was offering.

"Don't say a word, shitmagnet." Levi slowly growled as if to make sure the blond man would stay silent, his passive lips twitched in visible amusement as he got the message.

"Take the money and go." Another silent whisper which held the power of command. Levi didn't understand the sudden feeling of devotion that splashed his mind like a tsunami with force so strong he couldn't disobey. Frowning violently, he stepped back from Erwin. It was time to go. It was time to run.

*/*/*

Later, when Levi counted the stolen money, there was a business card hidden between the banknotes, with a name and phone number on it. Erwin Smith. He quickly shoved it into his pocket and put the entire loot back.

"Ronny," He called for the one with the most poisonous eyes, and when he arrived, Levi gave him the box with the money.

"Down the street, there lives an old lady who can't afford medical treatment. She's seriously ill, give her half of this box, that should be enough, I wrote the addresses on top. Another half is for the man living with his ten-year-old daughter, take Petra with you, she knows where he lives. Your money is in the stash, as usual. Go now, if anything happens, give me a call." Levi went silent after that, patting his comrade on the shoulder as if he was his little brother, even though he was almost as tall as Erwin. His black hair messily falling to his green eyes, he brushed them away with one hand and smirked at Levi.

"I don't know what this city would do without you, seriously." And with that, he was out.

*/*/*

It was almost morning when Levi finally finished his work and took the business card from his pocket to look at the number again. Why would Erwin do that, he didn't know. Everything about that guy was unpredictable and strange. He saved his contact and typed a message.

_**Unknown number 3:10 A.M.**_

_**Oi, fucker. **_

Too late to back down, Levi sent it without waiting for a reply because he thought Erwin would be long asleep. To his surprise, the response came right after he put his phone away and lay down to his bed. Sometimes, things just weren't going the way he had expected.

_**Erwin 3:15 A.M.**_

_**Hello, it was nice finally meeting you in person, Levi. I assume you didn't expect me to be there, am I right? **_

His composure was earned, steady and almost unbreakable and Levi found himself gritting teeth in anger as he replied to his text with furious speed. Why was he so angry, he didn't even know. His own feet were unsteady and his heart tried to fly out of his chest every time Erwin showed up in his head. Throwing his phone away, he turned his back on it and closed his eyes.

_**Levi 3:16 A.M. **_

_**Who the fuck do you think I am? A witch that can tell you your fucking future? What is wrong with you, asshole. **_

_**Erwin 3:17 A.M.**_

_**You're even more gorgeous in real life than on the stream, Levi. I almost lost it when I saw you. The hardest thing to do was to let you go. **_

Levi tried to sleep, he tried not to reach for the phone, he tried not to read the text. And he tried not to kill that bastard by glaring at the screen of the small device.

_**Levi 3:25 A.M.**_

_**Erwin, you bastard. I just robbed you. I'm a criminal and a whore, while you are a fucking president of one of the biggest companies in the country. How do you even expect me to react to that? **_

_**Erwin 3:25 A.M. **_

_**Let's go on a date. **_

The answer was almost immediate it left Levi out of breath for a second. With widened eyes that hid the feelings of a stormy night, he slowly replied and sighed heavily.

_**Levi 3:30 A.M. **_

_**Fuck you. **_

_**Erwin 3:31, Friday at 7 pm, the alley we met on today, be there. Good night, captain of the robbers. **_

_**Levi 3:32 A.M.**_

_**Tch, g' night, Commander of assholes. **_

It slipped out of their minds like a bar of wet soap crushing against the tiles, bending and breaking in the process as if someone or something had pushed them over the edge to the deepest waters of their dreams. It felt natural yet both men felt a sting in their hearts that smudged their visions for a second, leaving them in the middle of a battlefield with rocks madly destroying one house after another, stealing so many innocent lives at once. But they were steady, speaking just with their eyes, knowing what had to be done. They were soldiers offering hearts for the sake of humanity. Commander and his captain. Silent tearing noise woke Levi up from his delirium and it was only a few seconds later he realized it was his beloved shirt that was at fault. He lay on the ground, hands tightly grasping his shirt destroying the fabric, still hearing the silent hum of those flying boulders around him, even though he was safely at his home. Erwin, on the other hand, seemed to be wandering through the fields of hell for a little bit longer, looking for answers to questions he didn't even know about. It took him almost another twenty minutes to wake up and in the end, it all felt like a strange dream that once held the power of reality. It felt real. Levi felt real. And so did the pain.

*/*/*

Erwin decided to visit a church that was in the nearby town where he visited a few of his friends in the past. Climbing up the hill all the way to the top took him almost 50 minutes, and by the end of his journey, his shirt was completely soaked with sweat. Wiping his forehead with tissue, he entered the sacred place and went straight to the altar. There was nobody inside, just a priest walking towards him with a genuine smile on his wrinkled face.

"Mr. Smith, I didn't expect you here, how many years has it been already?" He asked politely and shook his hand in a warm and welcoming manner, Erwin briefly smiled at the man and shrugged.

"I believe it's been ten years since I've visited this place, father Shadis."

"Yes, I believe so. What brings you up here? Is everything going well in your life?"

Erwin paused for a moment, silently considering the question.

"Yes, my life has been good, thank you for asking. There's just one thing I'd like to talk about, if I may?" All of sudden, he felt uncomfortable, uneasy and scared. The weather outside resembled the storm inside of his soul, and just when the priest nodded, a huge strike of lighting bolt pierced the hot thickness in the air. The shore nearby screamed loudly as if crying for help, for ease. Both men stood under the roof of the old church, looking at the sea splashing its life against the rocks, the wind bringing melodies of the past right to their ears. Erwin could hear the battle cry in the undertone of the downpour and it forced him to speak about the matter of the unsolved problems he had been experiencing lately.

"I have a feeling this is not the first time I have been born. I know it sounds silly and creepy but I can't get the hold of it, it's right here but I can't reach it. And I keep dreaming about it, about this another world that I've never seen before. I thought it was due to the stress but now I'm not so sure anymore."

As he spoke his mind out, he saw a small silhouette hidden in the mist by the shore, standing still, his hands firmly gripping two swords with long blades, shining dimly. He wore a green cloak with a strange emblem on his back. The wings of freedom.

"You were a great Commander in your previous life, Erwin. Better than I ever could've been. President of the business company, my ass. You're not suited for such a job, there is something missing in your life and that's why you keep having these dreams. You need to roam, you need to wander, you need to learn, experience and kill." Shadis said in a low and dangerous tone, Erwin glanced at him with utter disbelief written all over his face.

"Excuse me, what?" He asked, the silhouette by the shore fading away slowly as if it was never there. Shadis smiled at him and replied.

"I said that you probably need some rest, son. You need to learn how to relax your body and mind. Take some time off to recharge, please."

The blond blinked, once, then twice. Was he really hallucinating? Without further investigation, he nodded and went to the altar to spend some more time with God, even though he didn't believe in one. Desperate times required desperate decisions.

When the dark fell on their eyelids, the pastor came again, offering him one spare bedroom to stay the night.

"The storm will probably last for a while and it's dangerous to go outside, I prepared a spare bedroom for you. Please make yourself at home. Dinner is ready, you can come downstairs and eat with us." And with that, Shadis trailed off. Erwin took his words into consideration, then pulled out his phone and wrote a quick message.

_**Erwy 10:03 p.m. **_

_**Hey, Hange. I'm taking a sick day tomorrow, please let me know if you need anything. Erwin. **_

He paused for a moment, silently looking down to Levi's name, but tapped on the screen and dialed his number anyway. He picked up almost immediately. Hearing his voice sharp and unamused like a cold cube in the middle of the winter, was somehow calming. Erwin knew they were about an hour apart but he couldn't help it, he just wanted to see him.

"Did you pissed your pants or why the fuck are you calling me, pisspot?"

"Hey Levi, could you please meet me at the old church in the nearest city? It's by the shore. I don't care if you use a taxi or train, I'll pay whatever is necessary to get you here. It's an hour away from here, I believe, I went on foot so it took me about two hours." The tone in which Erwin said it, was dangerous, pushy, needy as if there was something more than just a simple desire to see the smaller guy. There was just silence on the other side, Levi didn't say anything for a whole minute.

" Are you fucking crazy? It's stormy as fuck, what is happening, fucker?" The raven snorted violently, Erwin could hear him swear, talk to a bunch of other guys and when he addressed him again, his tone was monotonous and deadly.

"Fine, I'll come. Stay the fuck there and don't move or I'll kill the shit out of you." The phone went silent after that, Levi hung up. Erwin rubbed his cheeks and shook his head. What the fuck was he even doing? It had been almost ten years since he stopped smoking but now, he was desperate for a cigarette. Without hesitation, he stepped into the heavy rain and walked to a vending machine nearby to buy a cheap package, and by the time he arrived back to the church, he was soaking wet and trembling with cold.

*/*/*

It took an hour and a half for Levi to get to the area and first, Erwin heard the clatter of hooves, slowly getting closer and closer until he saw a black horse galloping up the hill towards him. Thinking he was hallucinating again, the blond slapped himself twice and took another cheap and disgustingly trashy cigarette. Looking back at the source of the noise, he realized it was actually a motorcycle. So he was hallucinating.

Levi pulled the vehicle to the side and jumped off of it, directly looking at the blond man. Somehow, seeing him sitting on the ground under the roof of an old church with a cigarette in his mouth, made him look vulnerable and attractive at the same time. Levi had to take a deep breath before getting closer to him.

"Oi, fucker. What's gotten into you?" Without hesitation, he grabbed his arm and pulled him up. Erwin slowly stood up to his full height and smiled politely at Levi. The whole situation was awkward and weird, yet the blond didn't seem to care.

"You look like shit, Erwin." Levi muttered with disinterest, the tension between them slowly and steadily rising. He could feel Erwin's vicious eyes on him, studying him precisely.

"Tell me something I don't know, Levi." He slowly replied and threw the rest of the cigarette into the heavy rain. It was a second before he reached out to touch Levi's damped hair ever so slightly as if the touch wasn't even there. Yet the raven noticed and snapped at him.

"Don't touch me. You stink. I'm not a whore who fucks everyone, I do it only on the stream, so back the fuck off."

"Why did you come?" Erwin asked slowly.

"You asked me to, imbecile."

"You could've turned me down."

"You sounded like a whiny little kid."

"Does that mean you just wanted to see me as well?

"Fuck you."

And there the course of their conversation changed. Erwin's expression darkened, his hard blue eyes silently staring into the unwelcoming and cold gray skies that reflected Levi's conflicted emotions so greatly. The tension almost unbearable, the chill air tenderly caressing their cheeks, making them red. And Erwin's answer.

"Yes, Levi. Fuck me."

The smaller guy slowly widened his eyes in silent shock as if he didn't expect this at all. And he wanted to kick him but instead of trying to, Levi moved quickly towards the blond and slammed their lips together to a heated and sloppy kiss.

Just a few moments later, Erwin pushed his back into the door of the offered room and burst in, pulling Levi with him without breaking their passionate kissing. He staggered to the table he had thrown Levi against, dropping an extinguished oil lamp to the ground. The sound of shards spread around the room, followed by steps after a few minutes. A brief knock on the door interrupted both men from the hazy overture. Levi was the first to recover, jumping up on the table and picking up his wet shirt.

"Who is it." He hissed at Erwin, furrowing his eyebrows violently, his body tense as if he was ready to fight. The blond shook his head to clear his mind and turned to the doorway when another knock came along, this time accompanied by Shadis's voice.

"Erwin, I've heard something, is everything okay? I'm going in." The blue eyes widened as the door handle moved, turning to Levi, he exhaled urgently. "Hide yourself."

"Where to, you asshole?"

"Here." And before Levi could protest in any way, Erwin pushed him under the table and sat in the chair, stealing the space under the table with his huge, long legs so that the smaller man was pushed against them.

"Dick, I don't fit in here. Move, fuck."

Erwin kicked him slightly, apparently to silence him, as Keith opened the door exactly at that moment.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I must have fallen asleep at the table and dropped the lamp as I moved my arms. I'll clean it up, Father." Erwin murmured with an apologetic smile on his face, yet his expression soon turned into a strangely stoic and hard. A small hand touched his crotch, squeezed his manhood, and soon after freed him from the prison of trousers.

"Are you all right, Mr. Smith? You look pale, should I bring you tea? Or some medicine?" Shadis asked worriedly and stepped closer to the table, picking up the broken lamp from the ground and placing it back on the desk. Erwin strained in his chair, clenching his fists, forcing himself to smile. The sweet breath traveled across his entire cock which twitched in unquenchable passion. And then Levi took him in his mouth.

"I'm ... ehhgrm, all right. Really ..." He slowly moved his hand from the table to his thigh, tilted his head to one side and nodded again, trying to get Keith away from this room. His fingers slowly ran through Levi's hair before he grasped them firmly and pulled him away from his penis. The silent moan escaped the raven's mouth when Erwin stole his toy, but he didn't give up and gave his throbbing length a few firm strokes.

"You don't look alright." Keith pointed out again, apparently not planning on leaving any time soon.

"Father Shadis, please, I promise you I'll go to bed immediately." "Erwin sounded a little desperate at this point, his cock already giving Levi a sweet taste of pre-cum as the smaller man worked on it precisely. He sighed and closed his eyes, trying so hard not to moan, not to show anything but it was hard because Levi was very skilled at what he was doing, and Erwin hadn't had his penis touched by someone else for a long time. The priest finally gave up, nodded and turned to the exit.

"Okay, let me know how are you feeling in the morning. Goodnight, Mr. Smith."

As soon as the door closed and Shadis was gone, Erwin pushed himself away from the table and pulled Levi up roughly, his hand still fisting the black strands of Levi's hair.

"What the hell was that ..." But the blond couldn't finish it because the tiny man slipped out of his grip, grasped his chin tightly, and twisted one of his arms behind his back, tying it to the chair with his shirt. Levi was quick, and Levi could fight.

"Shut the fuck up, Erwin. You asked me to fuck you. I'm doing it. Sit back and enjoy the ride, fucker."

Levi tied Erwin's other hand to the chair as well, then pulled back for a moment to examine his work. With head slightly tilted to his shoulder and eyes partly closed, he looked lovely and Erwin couldn't help but smile. He was irresistible, beautiful, and even though he was standing just right there in front of him, he seemed unattainable, as if there was a huge abyss, one that could not be crossed. His dick once again asked for attention with a slight twitch, and a hint of a smile appeared on Levi's face for a fleeting moment. The one simple act almost catapulted Erwin high into the clouds.

"Stay, doggie," the smaller man ordered and began to undress slowly, throwing wet pieces of clothing on the ground beside him. His pale skin glowed gently in the darkroom and contrasted with his charcoal black hair. The view Erwin had had many times on camera was now all the more intense when he could feel the heat of the other one's body. Levi turned his back on Erwin and leaned forward against the table. Without waiting for anything, he slid one finger inside his butt, arching his back like a cat who had just been caressed. Goosebumps appeared on his skin as he added a third finger and moaned loudly.

"Erwin ..."

"Levi ..."

The sound of his own name falling from Erwin's lips in such a devotional way, forced Levi to cease because his mind got struck with passion like a plague. He finished his preparation and turned back to the strapped man in the chair.

"You stink, Erwin."

"It doesn't seem to bother you."

"I'll wash you later." With the last words spoken roughly to his face, he coated Erwin's cock with saliva before finally sitting on him.

"Fuck, you're huge."

"Or you're too tiny." Erwin pointed out almost without breath, shaking ever so slightly at that sensation. Levi slowly lowered himself on him but it was the last slow movement he had done for the whole act, for he pulled the cock out a little and then slammed himself back at it deeply. Erwin gasped and leaned his forehead against Levi's chest, but the smaller man grabbed his hair and pulled his head back to kiss him roughly all the while riding him violently.

"Does it hurt you?" The blond man asked hazily, his eyelids almost a shape of a crescent moon, his lips parted and his body covered in sweat and goosebumps.

"No, shut up."

The proximity was addictive, playing with their skin as if it was an instrument, making a melody out of their moans. It was wild, unsteady and needy. And then the game began to crumble. The constant heat filling up their bodies, the unstrained desire fleeting in the air around them, crashing against the walls of the little dark room. The pace accelerated quickly, crazily as if there was no tomorrow. The chair jumped back, its creaking legs leaving a smudge on the floor. A breath, a groan, a silent whisper of the name, an engraved crescent on the skin caused by digging nails too harshly into the soft flesh of Erwin's shoulders. And then the cum filling up Levi's insides, making him shiver on top of the blond. The silent melody of the climax merged with a louder cry of his name as Levi came shortly after.

"I hate cigarettes but I want one now." Levi whispered breathlessly, the hair sticking to his sweaty forehead, his body still trembling from a recent act. And Erwin watched him silently, his blue ocean eyes staring into his face as if he had just seen a god.

"Let's go, then." Erwin murmured after a while.

Levi was beautiful.

TBC


	4. 4

A strange tingle appeared in Erwin's right upper arm just to be soon replaced with pain. A pain so huge it was almost unbearable. It took a few seconds for him to realize that his right arm was on fire but it took him another few minutes to wake up from his deep slumber. His chest tightening, his legs unable to move, his mind wide awake yet his body still hanging on the edge of the night dreaming. A paralysis. Panicking, Erwin tried to shift himself to the side but nothing happened. Staring into the horrid face of a weird creature that slightly resembled a human being, he tried to scream. Yet again, nothing. There was nothing. Desperation filling up his insides, he pushed one last time to wake up from the paralysis. And as if something popped, he viciously sat up straight, his left hand tightly grasping the painful spot in his right upper arm. He was awake, his body was awake but the pain was still there, lingering deep in the structure of his flesh and bones, laughing at him for what fool he was. Erwin sighed and got out of the bed, trying to shake the pain off somehow. Searching for the light, he realized he had dropped the lamp on the ground yesterday and it now lay on the table, broken. A memory of a pale, tiny man occurred in his mind, looking around, he tried to spot him but Levi was nowhere to be found. It was then when Erwin decided to go to the kitchen for some freshwater, his body tired, heart aching and mind blurry. He knew he wasn't just dreaming. Somehow he knew there was a glint of truth in his dreams, a glint of reality. It was somehow painful and exciting at the same time, that strange feeling of another reality couldn't be washed away. That feeling he had when he was with Levi. The excitement, the fear, the fond merging of these emotions altogether.

Erwin saw a thin line of light coming from under the door leading to the kitchen so before he got in, he made sure to lock every little unwanted emotion deep down in his mind. He thought it was Shadis but when he spotted Levi sitting by the table with a big cup of tea, his dark oceans of eyes revolted and lighten up his entire soul with feelings of endless joy and pain. He frowned at first, trying to shake off everything that kept messing up with his mind but it ended up being a failure. His face crumbled to million pieces.

"What the fuck are you looking at, Erwin?" Levi's tone was the thing that brought him back to reality, Levi's sharp tongue and piercing eyes raging with dark clouds of the upcoming storm. He always looked so ready to go, to run, to fight. He was always ready to kill. And although that would stop many from approaching, Erwin's feet moved forward, and with each step coming closer to the very sense of hell itself, he realized there was no point in denying, no point in stopping. He wanted to be close to that dangerous storm Levi had represented.

"What the fuck, Erwin…" Was all he could say before the bigger guy kneeled before him, wrapping his arms around the small waist and leaning closer so he could slowly rest his head on Levi's lap. At that moment, there was nothing but endless fondness, tenderness, and pain. And Levi felt it all.

The rain was still pouring the melody of the two souls who sat in the kitchen, the orange light from the horizon pushing away the storm, looking into the darkness of the ending night, coloring demons with the morning dew that was tirelessly covering every crook and crevice of the land around, its blanket soft and fluffy. But neither of that mattered, for they stayed hidden under the roof of the old church and only a voice of Erwin could be heard as he slowly recounted the burden of his dreams. Levi could understand, and he knew he would.

"Erwin, are you telling me you think you've already lived once?" Levi asked slowly, his voice as dead as a corpse lying in the coffin.

"I know it sounds silly but these dreams look more like a memory than an actual dream. I think." At that, Levi frowned, he felt something burning the inside of his own sanity with memories that hadn't been his own but at the same time, they weren't anyone else's but his own. He sighed.

"Go back to sleep, Erwin. It's too early to have that kind of a conversation."

After a while, Erwin left Levi in the kitchen and got back to bed hoping the raven would come soon too, but before he could see the face he desired the most, he fell asleep again. And Levi never came.

*

A few hours later, back in the city, Levi parked his black motorcycle at his usual spot in an abandoned alley. Morning already showing its fruits with yellow beams shining through empty streets he came to call home, but even though there was so much light, he felt as if diving into the heavy darkness where there was no chance of escaping from. He left Erwin by the shore with his own thoughts when he probably needed him the most, yet again, they weren't dating, they just fucked once and that was it. That's what he wanted, right? His fucking body.

He grabbed the handle of the front door and realized it was locked. So nobody was home, Levi was all alone with his raging thoughts and feelings, and he didn't even know how to deal with it. Maybe that was his reason to abandon Erwin in such a way but he also had these burdens that couldn't be swallowed. Sometimes, the fear of the truth was much bigger than the urge to make a good impression. He didn't care at that point, he already fucked things up so forgetting about Erwin seemed like the best idea.

"Ronny?" He tried to call his loyal friend but there was no answer from him whatsoever. He wasn't home either. Levi slowly left the living room area and got into his own bathroom, quickly typing a message to the called man before getting into the waters of his own mind, regrets, and uncertainties. Then he got into the bathtub to ease the tension of his body.

_LEVI 6:31 A.M._

_Ronny, I locked the door from the inside, climb up to the second floor if you wanna get home. And tell the others too if you see them. I had a rough night so don't disturb me unless it's necessary. I left the money in the stash and you have food in the fridge. _

"Seriously, he's acting like a stupid mother. I'm not his kid, seriously! Nahh, I'm so pissed from being pissed because of that stupid group of weirdos who tried to rob me. Poor me, seriously." If he happened to have a sign attached to him, it would probably say that instead of being robbed this man robbed the entire group and kicked them in their balls. He was simply just like that. Reading the text from Levi, he rolled his eyes and shuffled his phone into the back pocket of his jeans. That was when he spotted a weird looking girl.

A pink-haired girl.

She stood there at the corner of two streets where no girl should stand, where even men felt shivers coming down their spine. Yet there she was, holding a fucking ice cream and looking far into the dark alley, she looked like she was deep in her thoughts so when Ronny approached her, she didn't seem to notice him at first.

"Who in the holy havens eats ice cream in the morning? Hey, bitch, move, you're in the way." He growled at her so sharply it made her yank in surprise. Not to mention that there was plenty of space around for him to pass by. But Ronny was a simple man and this route was his, she was standing in the wrong spot.

A girl slightly above average height caught his attention mainly because of her large blue eyes that reminded him of the summer sky. The eyes stared at him with a mixture of confusion and undying curiosity that sparked another wave of incomprehensible anger in him. Her pink hair fell down to her collarbones in soft and loose ripples, lining the light skin with a touch of rose in her cheeks and lips.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" She asked politely, a soft smile appearing on her face, making him frown even more. Again, he tried to intimidate the lady by stamping and stepping closer to her. A silent growl was accompanied by his hand, which soon tore her ice cream out of her palm. One scoop fell to the ground and lay there, slowly melting. The other one Ronny shoved directly into his mouth, then pushed his shoulder into the woman and tried to walk past her.

"I hate people like you, seriously. Get lost."

"Oh…But that's mine." The shock took over her body and she just managed to outstretch her hand towards Ronny, not able to grasp the situation at all, that confused face of hers looked almost cute, a little glint of uncertainty and fear glittering in the blue, blue sky of her eyes. And that was the last thing he had seen before she quickly left the place. His heart pounding the melody of some unknown feelings made him even more uncomfortable than before. He ate the ice cream and went home.

*

Climbing like a monkey to the second floor was a pain in the ass and he made a self note to scold Levi for making him do such things. He snuck through the window to the apartment and made his way to the kitchen, where Levi stood by the oven wearing a hideous apron with black cat print on it and a lettering "best dad ever." The whole room smelled amazing, the baked meat getting just the right golden color, the garlic added to the mix of vegetables as well as the bacon dancing on the pan. Ronny caught himself drooling, hunger immediately taking over his mind and heart. He slowly approached Levi and stole a little piece of bacon, quickly shoving it in his mouth so the smaller guy couldn't take it back.

"Don't steal the food or I won't give you anything for lunch." Levi snapped at him but his tone wasn't as deadly as expected, if anything, it seemed tired.

"You wouldn't do that, seriously. You know how annoying I can be when I'm hungry. By the way nice dress, seriously. I've never thought I would see you wearing this ridiculous thing." Ronny smiled sheepishly and tugged at the apron slightly to give his words more value.

"I just didn't want to be filthy, that's all." Levi murmured flatly, the voice perfectly reflecting his face that was without any sort of expression. Ronny, on the other hand, was visibly full of emotions, a raging fire of them spouting from his eyes so fiercely it could damage the whole household with just one explosion. Levi didn't mind, though. Ronny was one of the first kids he took in and made a fine man out of a total asshole by giving him home, direction and purpose. And food, most importantly.

That's what he was doing, giving a home to stray kids, giving the money he had stolen to the ones who needed them the most. Making a better place out of this fucked up world full of nonsense. And his name, as well as his group, were well known all around the town because what they've been doing gave a purpose to those kids. And even though none of them was actually a kid anymore, he still liked to address them as such. Continuing with the cooking, he glared at Ronny standing beside him.

"Yeah yeah I know. But I still kinda like seeing you wearing that hideous thing, seriously. It was a gift, after all."

"A fucked up one, Ronny. Put these plates on the table and prepare a drink for everyone." Levi ordered in a flat tone again, casually pointing at the table and clean dishes in the dishwasher. Ronny nodded and went to do what he was told to but his mind was occupied with feelings he wanted to shake off.

" Hey, Levi?"

" Yea?" Levi was busy finishing the lunch so he didn't even turn around to see Ronny's face but once he spoke again, he stopped his movements and slowly locked his stormy gray eyes with the poisonous green ones. Something in his voice caught the smaller guy's attention. Something he once felt in his own voice. Something like Erwin.

"I met this girl today, she looked stupid and acted stupidly as well. And I really didn't like her, seriously. She was so annoying I couldn't even breathe the same air with her. I stole ice cream from her, isn't that great? I think she deserved it. Seriously, she was pissing me off, never have I ever met someone like this. She was so weird and her hair was pink! Can you imagine, seriously?!"

Levi put the vegetables aside and flashed an eye at the other man, silently listening to his crap.

"It seems to me that you liked the girl, Ronny." He pointed out slowly and put the meal on the table. Ronny halted and frowned.

"I did not!" Said the man with cheeks slightly blushed while looking down at his feet.

"I don't fucking care if you did, who the fuck even am I to judge you."

"Something happened, Levi? You talking about last night or something?" As much as Ronny looked uninterested and selfish, he was pretty attentive, almost to the point where Levi found it annoying.

"Nothing worth mentioning." He said roughly as if to make sure his companion wouldn't ask any more questions. Ronny got the message and dropped the subject.

*

Lunch was good, Levi's cooking seemed to bring everyone to a good mood because soon, the clatter and chatter filled up the whole apartment. It was a common thing for them, gathering at least once a day to enjoy the meal together. They were family, after all.

"I'm really surprised people love you so much, Levi. If they only knew you are a sadistic clean freak, they would probably be scared of you. How many date requests have you received this week again? Ten?" Petra asked with a wide smile while finishing her dessert slowly. Ronny was on his third plate and he still looked hungry, the rest of them finished their meal some time ago. Levi sat in his seat, elbow lazily resting on the back of the chair, fingers holding a dear cup of the beloved black tea, this time cold, and with ice cubes melting into the liquid.

"18."

"Wow, that's plenty!" Petra smiled but something in her tone seemed to be a little off, something in her eyes told them she was jealous. Everyone knew, yet no one pointed it out. Until someone did.

"I remember when I first came here, Isabel hated those girls who tried to get into Levi's pants. And the day when Levi brought me here, there was a girl waiting for him with a package full of chocolate candies. Levi gave them to me right in front of her and it made her angry. She tried to reason with him but Isabel kicked her out of the door. I soon realized it's not good to make Isabel angry and it's not good to leave the foil from the chocolate candies on the table. Levi scolded me so much I ended up hidden in Farlan's room who was kind enough to tell me he has a problem with filth, seriously. These girls are never gonna leave, Petra, get over it and stop sulking. Seriously." So apparently there was one person who wasn't afraid to confront her feelings and let them out in the open. Ronny was staring at her with vicious fire raging in his eyes, yet his words were spoken in a much more mellow way. Petra looked away and ate the one last piece of her dessert.

"I know I know." She only replied and took her leave, followed by the others so there were only Levi and Ronny left again.

"You fucked it up," Levi said monotonously.

"Yeah, I guess so," Ronny responded with a shrug.

"Well, she'll be fine."

"Are you thinking about the person you spent the night with?" Ronny asked out of the blue once again, expecting Levi to be surprised by his attack. But Levi only glared at him and headed for the exit with a sour "no," leaving his lips.

"Seriously? Really?"

Ronny pushed again, but all he got was just a middle finger before Levi left completely.

*

There were three messages from Erwin. Levi deleted them without even reading a single word. There was no reason for them to continue with this nonsense. That night, Levi logged into the usual website, yet this time, he enabled a group stream where more people could pay all at once. He didn't expect Erwin's nickname to be there, and it wasn't. There was a group of unknown nicknames, a few ones that Levi remembered and two anonymous customers. He didn't expect Erwin to be there, yet Erwin was hidden behind one of the anonymous people watching his stream. There he was just as he had been multiple times before and he felt like nothing really happened, it felt just like the first day he visited this stream. He was unknown, he was hidden, he was ashamed.

"What a creep I am, really. " Erwin murmured silently into his palm that was covering his mouth and sighed as he watched Levi undress in front of the camera. And when he started touching himself, seeing those perverted comments from other males made him crazy jealous he had to actually write a comment himself to let them know their behavior was completely inappropriate. Yet he didn't realize this site was actually there for people like them, and for comments like this, so his own writing seemed to be out of place as if it was laughing at him for being such a fool.

_Anonymous_

_Don't talk to him like that, your behavior is very inappropriate and nasty. You should feel ashamed for acting like that. Behave. _

But the chat was exactly for nasty words, for perverted tragedies, and for sexual themes. He visited the erotic site so there wasn't anything bad about being like that. Feeling stupid immediately after sending the text to the group, Erwin thought about his sanity once again, and on top of that, he got scolded instead of praised by the entire team of those disgusting perverts. But Levi wasn't one of them, he read the message and frowned into the camera as if it meant something, but since they were on a public stream, he didn't say anything distinctive, yet Erwin felt a heat coming down his spine, he felt a raging fire building up inside of his body as if Levi himself was the lighter. As if Levi was someone so trustworthy that he could go insane and Levi would still be there, steadily standing, not wavering, still like a stone, like an anchor. He needed that anchor and it pained him greatly to realize it was never his.

"Don't mind him, this fucker is prolly just a weirdo with unsolved past or something like that. Maybe he used to fucking kill trolls or something and now he's troll himself." Levi said out loud with eyes piercing his own camera as if he was looking far beyond that device to a place only Erwin could see. He recognized him, and proof to that theory appeared a few minutes later when a window with a private message popped up on Erwin's screen.

_Levi_

_What the fuck are you trying to achieve with this, Erwin?_

_Anonymous_

_I paid for the stream I have all the rights to be here too._

_Levi_

_That's not what I meant, fucker._

_Anonymous_

_Make a show for your watchers because otherwise, they'll be unhappy with your performance, Levi. As much as I hate to see their disgusting comments, they've already paid for the show… _

Erwin didn't want to say those words, and he certainly didn't want to end the chat with Levi but there was no helping it, he had to finish his job. It was the longest hour of his life. Sitting in his chair and looking at Levi made him crazy jealous, insanely protective, and madly addicted. He started to feel resentment towards the entire show, comments, and encouragements about how Levi's hole should be more open, how he should stick the dildo deeper, or how he should swallow their cum. Erwin felt pure agony at the end of the stream. And just when he wanted to leave the chatroom, another message popped up.

_Levi_

_So?_

_Anonymous_

_Don't do this job, Levi._

_Levi_

_None of your fucking business, why did you come again? I fucking know it wasn't for the show because you've already gotten what you wanted, right? You fucked me, that's it, your dreams accomplished. Now leave me alone, I don't have anything more to offer, fucker. I gave you what you wanted, that's it._

_Anonymous_

_I can't stop thinking about you, Levi, that's why I came._

_Levi_

_Good one, I'm not gonna fall for that, you're not the only one who ever tried sweet-talking. Forget about me and you may as well forget about the dreams you're having. It's not good to stick around, I highly recommend you to get the fuck lost. Levi out._

Before Erwin could finish typing, Levi has already left the stream, leaving him in front of the blank black screen that resembled the very bottom of his heart. Black.

*

The heat of the summer day slowly turned to a warm night but the city was still hot despite the drop in temperature, it almost felt like there was a mist of thickness hanging above the entire town. No wind, no birds singing, no life around. Everything seemed to be covered in pure despair, catching every soul passing by in its claws. Clouds slowly traveled across the sky, heavier with every minute, it soon started to rain. Levi stood in front of the fancy door, dressed in a leather coat to keep himself safe from the pouring rain, his cape, though, was soaking wet and left a temporary effect of wetness on his black hair. He stood there for twenty minutes before he finally knocked on the door and let the resident of the house know about his arrival. A few minutes later, a weird and fat looking man opened the door and let him in.

"To be clear, I'm doing this just once. I'll let you fuck me in order to delete every record you have on Ronny and the others, are we clear? Before we get to it, I wanna see you getting rid of everything. And don't try to hide something, I'll be sure to burn your entire house down if you do, so take it as a warning." Levi spoke to him in a clear and low voice, making sure the fat ugly pig understood.

"Yes yes, baby boy, come on." His voice turned nasty, his mouth almost drooling over the lean and muscular body of Levi's, his hands sweaty, disgustingly resembling expired sausages. His oversized stomach showing its skin under a too-small button-up shirt. He smelled like a mixture of buttery sweat and cheap tobacco. Levi wanted to vomit but then he remembered this was for his family, and for the unlucky part of the town where hundreds of people suffered, this was quick and easy money with deleting all records of his comrades. All he had to do was to let the pig use him just like he desired. He needed the money and he needed to protect his people. It was an obligation.

The man's thinning greasy hair glistened in the glow of porcelain chandeliers in the hall, and Levi knew if he tried to fry meat on them, it would've worked. He looked like a piece of lard, stuffing his navel with all sorts of precious goodies while robbing the poor. His lack of interest in the quality of life in the city choked Levi like poison gas. But he still consented with the price the man was asking for, and he did it for the citizens of this town.

Together they reached the library, in the center of which was a large table made of solid wood. The man sat on his ridiculously huge chair to which he couldn't really fit his whole body so he ended up looking like a huge squishy toy stuffed into a small space. Then he lit the fireplace and showed the raven all the documents he had thrown into it soon after. And before everything was burned, he turned to Levi and tapped on his lap.

"Get naked and sit on me, sweetheart."

But Levi refused to move one bit at first, he frowned and watched one paper after another die in flames, and when he gazed at the man, he flatly asked.

"And the money?"

Gross, whose name perfectly matched his appearance, smiled disgustingly and threw the entire money-box on the table. Then he stood up when Levi still did not move from his place and grabbed him roughly by his wrist.

"Now my reward." The bigger man let a pungent breath into his ear and pushed his own crotch together with his fat stomach on the butt of a dark-haired man. With a soft click, he unbuckled his belt and tied his companion's hands with it. So tight they turned purple after a while. And he began to undress him, roughly, hard and without mercy, all the while he was panting like an old locomotive that looked like before its death.

Click, creak, exhale, inhale. Fast shuddered movements of thick fingers on the smooth skin of a smaller man. Saliva on his back, no preparation, hard thrust. Hair pull, hit in the face, wrist bruises, whip on the body. Grunting like a disgusting pig that fed on Levi. Blood between his legs coming right from his ass, pain, madness.

And when the madness finally met its end, the smaller man lay against the table for a few minutes, trying to catch his breath. And then he got up, dressed, picked up his box full of banknotes and walked to the door, accompanied by Grosse's contented, moldy voice.

"I hope we'll repeat it someday."

Levi didn't answer and left.

*

That night he felt lonely, deprived of all pride, on the brink of insanity. He felt abused.

That night he was chased by nightmares that had no end. That night he stood on the roof in an abandoned town protected by huge walls. That night he heard the swish of boulders flying around, that night he heard the cries of soldiers from across the battlefield.

That night he saw Erwin die.

That night he saw his past as well as did Erwin on the other side of the city, screaming to the darkness of the room, his palm firmly grasping his right arm. That night he felt the blood running down his belly.

That night he saw himself die.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: I'm so sorry for the long wait and even though this chapter is a mess, I hope you'll like it, nonetheless. I tried to explain as much as I could and now I have a feeling I haven't explained anything at all. Ahhhh...

5.

The next morning, everyone in Levi's household had a bag of money prepared as a gift from the dark-haired man on the kitchen counter. None of them thought it was easy money, and none of them thought it was right. But none of them questioned Levi about it, they simply took it as a gift and went to the other households nearby to treat the families there as well. With this much money, they knew Levi had to do something dirty, yet knowing it was done for a greater good, they couldn't scold him for it. And when Levi appeared in the kitchen to snatch himself a big cup of tea alongside with the French toast, Ronny was the only one seated in the room, childishly furrowing at his cup of hot cocoa that just burned his tongue, and with it resting between his teeth as if it hurt, he looked up at Levi, immediately noticing his bruised wrists.

"Hey Levi, what happened yesterday?" He asked solemnly, concern written all over his face. Levi never wanted to worry his family so instead of telling him the truth, he just shrugged and replied sorely, his voice as flat as always.

"Nothing out of ordinary, I just snatched some money from one rich pig, that's it."

"Seriously? You think I'm stupid or what?" Ronny's voice vibrated through the whole kitchen with strong undertones of madness, and Levi knew he would be hard to persuade.

"I said nothing, don't fucking stick your nose to shit that isn't your fucking business." Levi snapped at him, his patience growing old and rusty, not being able to contain himself, he headed out of the kitchen.

"I'm gonna take a bath, don't disturb me, I want some peace for once." He added right after, leaving the room completely, Ronny standing with his mouth ajar and eyes a little wider than usual. There was something with Levi, he noted. Something bad. And when the smaller one disappeared in the corridor of the house, Ronny then decided to sneak into his bedroom to have a proper look.

Heart pounding in his chest, he placed an ear to the center of the bathroom door and listened for a moment. Hot water running, slowly filling up the bathtub and noises of someone getting undressed convinced Ronny the smaller guy was there and it would give him a great half an hour to sniff around his room.

When he first entered, a pang of troublesome guilt filled up his guts that he almost turned around and walked out again, but eventually, he managed to stay, ignoring the lingering feeling of escaping in his body. He looked at the bed, walked over to the drawers and pulled them open just to see a bunch of neatly folded underwear and socks. Nothing special. He went through every drawer he could find and lost his interest and adrenaline in the process, there wasn't anything exciting. That was until he opened the last drawer hidden just beside the desk where his laptop was placed.

Dildos, anal plugs, and all sorts of erotic devices were there, just waiting for Levi to use them. There were so many Ronny didn't even know there could be that amount of options in this sphere. He slowly took one big dildo and frowned at it, his mind going completely crazy about it. What was Levi doing with these? Has he been using them often? Was he gay or just enjoyed something filling up his ass? But because Ronny was smart kiddo, the placement of these didn't seem right, being it just next to the computer where a camera was installed, its lense looking in the direction of Levi's bed. Something seemed off so he dared to open his laptop and met a welcoming screen asking for a password.

"Shit. Shit, seriously." He muttered softly, the big dildo still firmly held in his hand as he began to wave with it around him, obviously trying to think of a password Levi could have.

He typed "bigdildoguy" but that didn't work. Then he tried "LeviAckerman" with no such luck. Starting to be a little desperate, he looked around the room, everything put into its place, all tidy and stuff and he thought of how Levi liked his things clean and simple. Furrowing his brows, he once again examined the space around his desk, finding a single decorative picture with a quote on it, saying: "Some call it OCD, I call it not being a fucking slob." There were few words underlined - "not a fucking slob" - so Ronny took his chance and wrote it down just out of curiosity and the screen of Levi's computer popped up to welcome him. Success, he noted joyfully and clicked on the link listed in the most recent history, entering a fucking erotic website with lots of streams and other videos. Accidentally starting a stream, the camera began to record his face with a big dildo being held in his hand. And some people started to type in the chat.

"Oh no, heck is this, seriously…"

_Anonymous_

_You brought a friend, Levi? Show me a dance with that big dildo of yours. You're so hot._

_biggie-boogie-tralala _

_oh, show me how you two fuck_

_BigBossBum_

_get naked, sugar cube, i wanna see your dick dripping with cum, uhm uh..._

And then Ronny realized what was going on. He basically threw the dildo back to the drawer as if it was poisonous, wiped his hand on his pants and quickly closed the laptop. With a face full of guilt, he quickly pulled himself up from the chair and stumbled across the room to the door. Leaving frantically, he totally forgot to turn off the stream and its recording.

When Levi got back to his room, Ronny was long gone, however, there was something a little off with his chair as well as with his drawer. The latter slightly opened while the chair was pushed away from the desk as if someone left the room in a hurry. And Levi remembered that it wasn't like this before so slightly narrowing his gaze, he walked towards the chair and opened the drawer. One of his dildos wasn't exactly on the same spot, and his computer light was turned on. With a long exhale, he opened his laptop just to see a website where a very short stream was recorded. A few comments visible, a dildo in one hand of a dark-haired guy. A dumbly looking guy who seemed to have no idea what was happening. Ronny.

"Fuck, I'm gonna kill him." Levi deleted the entire record of the stream that wasn't even his own, threw a shirt on and headed straight to Ronny's room. Without even knocking on the damn door, he burst in with raging eyes resembling a strong storm, and Ronny flinched, his body immediately tense, his face holding a fake and stupid smile.

"Oh hey, Levi, what's going on?" He tried to hide his embarrassment as well as a little bit of fear that was currently attacking his stomach, which kept on singing with the most unpleasant noises. Levi, despite his small and tiny figure, knew how to be intimidating, and surely Ronny never wanted to make him as pissed as he looked now.

"Shut the fuck up, you sneaky bastard. What the fuck were you doing in my room?!" Levi snapped at the taller man, grabbing firmly the collar of his shirt and yanking him forward, Ronny was almost surprised by the huge force the smaller man possessed.

"Eh, I… I didn't want to stick my nose to something that isn't my business but I had to, seriously! Those bruises you have, that's not what I wanna see, I don't want anyone from my family to be treated like this! If you let them do this to you, I will find another job, a part-time job at local burger shops, anything! Just don't let them hurt you, Levi!" At that point, he was desperate, filled with concern, fear, and worry. "I mean it, I will help you, I can work at the local restaurant or something, seriously. I just don't want to see this. Don't let them hurt you for the sake of others, that's not right, seriously! And I know they did because you're so strong none of those pigs would be able to lay a single finger in you! Unless you let them, Levi. You did, right?"

"Tch, you can't cook shit." Levi pointed out flatly.

"No shit, how do you know!"

"Seriously? Once you cooked us dinner and Farlan blocked our fucking toilet for the entire evening."

Ronny let out a small laugh before gazing up at Levi, his eyes serious.

"Tell me what happened, Levi." He whispered weakly, unsure of what the smaller man would do if he asked more loudly. And Levi sighed, let go of Ronny's shirt and sat beside him on the bed. He let it out, he let it all out, started with his job, continued with Erwin and ended up telling him about Gross. The entire time, Ronny was surprisingly silent, staring either into the space of the room or at Levi. And when the smaller one finally finished, Ronny put his arm around his shoulders and sighed.

"I've never wanted you to sacrifice yourself for the sake of humanity, you know. Seriously, you're so humble it hurts, think about yourself for once, Levi." He slowly said, eyes locked with the ones full of rain.

"I'm not humble at all, fucker. I'm just trying to survive in this shitty world and help as many people as I possibly can so that they don't have to lead the same shitty life. Time's up, I don't wanna dig into more shit than we already have." Levi closed the gates to his own soul once again, not leaving Ronny any choice to talk back, then he slowly freed himself from the hold and stood up.

"You're a good man, seriously. I'm sorry I was sniffing in your room."

"Yea, you're grounded and you're gonna clean kitchen and bathroom for the entire week, let that be your punishment." Levi murmured monotonously as if he was talking about the weather, yet Ronny wailed in despair, partially because the smaller man ignored his words and partially because of what Levi had said.

"Grounded? No, you can't do that!"

Levi had a hard time trying not to smirk at the younger man so he turned his back on him and headed for the exit.

"No, I fucking can't 'cause I'm not your fucking papa. But it was fun seeing your desperate face. The cleaning duty is an order, though. I expect you to clean every day, be sure I'll check on you." Grabbing the handle of the door, he gave Ronny one last glare before he was out.

*/*/*

A week later, Erwin started to feel a little uneasy, he was checking Levi's profile every night just to make sure the man was alright, but there were no signs of him at all. The stream was as empty as a bottle of rum on a pirate ship, and something felt utterly wrong. It was then when he decided to pay him a visit, worried that something bad happened to him, Erwin found himself in front of the door leading to Levi's house. It took him some time to find his whereabouts but now, standing tall in his fitting suit, he knocked on the door to let the household know about his arrival. He looked ridiculously out of place with his perfect outfit, an expensive watch, and freshly polished shoes. Even his hair was neatly brushed to one side, a little bit of pomade still present.

The door snapped open and a man with poisonously green eyes stood there, his face unwelcoming even though his eyes seemed to hold a little surprise to them.

"The heck you doing here, seriously?" Ronny asked with a frown, stepping closer so he could block the door completely. Erwin smiled politely back at him and outstretched his hand as if asking for a shake.

"I'm Erwin, I'm Levi's friend, is he home?" When he spoke, his voice was velvety, deep and calm, but Ronny could sense more than just that. Ronny could sense the undeniable power, the simplest of desires to listen and follow this man. Ronny could feel a real leader standing in front of him. And then Levi's voice from another room snapped him back to reality.

"Who's there, Ronny?"

Both men flinched and looked at each other, their eyes meeting for a brief moment to start a nonverbal conversation. As if they were saying

_"He's here, you can't lie right now" _

_"No shit, I can't. But still, fuck you" _

Erwin's palm held the door, his gaze steady digging into Ronny's face, his eyes furious to get what he wanted but Ronny wasn't giving up just yet.

"He's not here for you, you're not welcomed, mister disgusting fucker, seriously. Now fuck off before I make you regret your stupid decision to come here, seriously." And before he gave him the chance to speak again, or to fight back, he slammed the door shut with all his force, hitting Erwin in the forehead in the process. But Ronny couldn't care less about the blonde, he quickly locked the door and went straight to the kitchen.

"Who was that?" Levi's voice sounded flat and unamused, busy with cooking dinner, he didn't even meet Ronny's eyes.

"Erwin." The taller man answered sourly and watched the smaller one throw the wooden spoon into the sink, hurrying to the door to catch a glimpse of that bastard's face. But Erwin was already gone, and all Levi saw was an empty street.

/*/*/

The weather that day wasn't very pleasant, rain washed away all of the dust from the streets, leaving nothing but paintings made of puddles on the concrete, reflecting the street lights on their surface. An early morning, maybe too early to be wandering around but some of the less lucky had to go to work. And while Levi headed home from a very tiring _work_ night_, _Erwin was on his way to the company. The tower clock sounded, scaring up a flock of pigeons in the process, now leaving them to fly across the entire square in unpredictable swirls and twists. It was five o'clock in the morning. And the world looked gray.

As if a smoke, thick and heavy, ran through the almost empty streets, devouring two lost souls in its universe. And when the blurry wave of smoke lifted, replacing the old and unwelcoming gray sight with more green, more lively, and more desperate one, Levi almost got hit by a passing car. Or was it a boulder?

A huge and unexpected pain occurred in Erwin's right arm as if it was ripped off. Or bitten off? Just a few blocks away from each other they stood, yet so far away from the reality, a red string of past, entwined around their fingers, flew through the fields of their minds towards one another, as if it knew where to turn, where to go and what to search for. It connected for a brief period of time, suddenly forcing both men to look in one specific direction. Erwin saw him first. A small statue, yet still quite muscular, hair as black as graphite, face turned away from him so he couldn't see those gorgeous rainy eyes. Without hesitation, Erwin led his footsteps down the street, closer to the man he felt a strange urge to know. He even started smiling like an idiot when he got closer and touched his shoulder slightly.

"Levi…" the blond spoke in a low and tender voice as if to try not to scare the smaller man.

And when he turned to meet Erwin's gaze, his eyes were dark brown, his hair visibly longer and his statute wasn't all that muscular, on top of that, he was taller. Erwin frowned at Levi, staring into the depth of his dull eyes before snapping back into reality. It wasn't Levi. And before the man could say anything, Erwin hurriedly apologized and left the square. The red string of past still lingering in the air.

*/*/*

"Erwin, Gross is gonna be here soon, what the heck are you doing drooling all over your desk?" Nayla laughed at the president while slapping his head with a stack of papers before putting it on the table. Erwin slowly raised his head, feeling a little dizzy, he faintly smiled at his coworker and took the business reports Nayla brought with her.

"Are you participating this time or not?" The blond asked, his bright eyes examining her face that looked overly friendly, yet a faint demonic touch decorated the pupils of her grey-green eyes. Erwin always thought that she was good at making people her pawns, moving them completely willingly over the board to places where she wanted them to be. She excelled at communication with potential clients. Other than that, she tended to be pretty bossy, loud and lazy but Erwin liked her, nonetheless. There was a spark of undeniable charisma that surrounded her entire existence, she was fierce fearless and wild. Something he learned to appreciate over the years he had worked with her.

"No shit, you want me to attend the meeting with you?! What happened to you? I remember you saying that I'm not allowed to be there because my explosive persona might blow the entire roof off." She laughed wholeheartedly, waving with one hand in the air as if to show how big the explosion would be if it ever happened.

"I think we can make an exception if you behave the way you should. I just want you to observe, not just him but the entire place. Oh and yes, call the driver, I assume we're going to drink a little."

"Roger, Erwie, Roger!" She almost sang and turned on her heel to face the door again and before she left, she pointed a finger at her face.

"You have drool on your chin, Erwin. Looks funny and I would personally love to leave it there but I know Gross wouldn't. See ya!" And then she was gone, leaving Erwin with eyes rolled up. That girl was a walking disaster.

Slowly walking towards her office, Nayla registered a spark of blond hair turning behind the corner, and she sped up the pace to catch up with that blondie. Erika. Her best friend, a coworker of Hange who was more of a scientist than anything else. A tall blonde woman with blue-grey eyes, freckles all over her face and lips so full Nayla wanted to kiss them. They had a weird relationship.

"Hey there! Erwin just told me I can come to the meeting as well, wanna hang out for a bit before we head out to the restaurant?" She unbuttoned first two buttons on her shirt and threw her chin in the direction of one unused room nearby, while Erika's face reddened viciously. She frowned at Nayla as if to decline her offer but before anyone could see her, she slipped into the darkness of the room, not leaving any traces of her existence. Nayla smiled sheepishly and followed the same steps as her friend. They had a very weird relationship.

/*/*/

The food at the restaurant was delicious, and they all saved the details of the contract for later, just enjoying the meal to the fullest. After they finished the dinner, Erwin stood up and led them to the lounge bar, ordering a carafe of whiskey with some snacks to fill up their needs. Hange, Erika and Nayla sat down by the fireplace and Erwin sat with Gross by the window, women leaving some business to men for a moment. The blond offered a cigar to the other man, smiling at him politely. And while they smoked and drank their drinks, both of them started to discuss further details of the pact. It didn't take too long for Gross to get drunk so after about an hour later, when they had everything discussed, Gross started talking about things Erwin would've never thought of.

"Do you guys know how much do little whores cost these days? They're incredibly expensive, I've had this one about a week ago and he wanted to pay so much for his body that I almost thought he must be made of gold. He wasn't but his butt felt so good I ended up wanting more. Hopefully, he'll be available soon." Erika stared at the man with mouth slightly ajar while Nayla tried her best not to look at him at all, keeping her promise not to be too explosive. She just clenched her fists under the table and Erika's hand found hers in some sort of comfort. Hange was out calling with Moblit and Erwin… Oh, Erwin looked at Gross with a flat and empty expression, a polite smile still lingering in the soft pattern of his pinkish lips. Nayla excused herself and Erika took her leave as well, making sure the other girl wouldn't do anything stupid. Erwin remained collected, his composure intact.

"Is that so? I've never tried anything like that, Mr. Gross, would you be so kind as to tell me more about the topic?" He asked, letting the conversation flow through the fields of uncomfortable topics that he didn't like. But the company wanted the contract, and Erwin started to feel a suspicion growing inside of his head. Gross got drunk easily and when he did, he was an open book, Erwin thought he might use it for the business manipulation but now, he thought there were more options to it.

"Well well, my child. You're asking the right person, I know about the finest girls and boys in the city, one is truly exceptional. This little bitch called himself Levi, such a cute little boy, black hair, porcelain skin, defined muscles, and tight ass. I didn't have to prepare him for anything, I just fucked him on the table, he didn't scream nor did he cried, even though I like to do it raw so that they bleed or it hurts them, you know. They're just my whores that I pay. They have no rights and I treat them like that. I didn't expect him to be so cool about it, I wanna meet him again and break him completely, he's a tough one. I remember he was so tiny for a man, I had no real expectations for him and he surprised me greatly." As Gross spoke, little drops of spit appeared on his mustache as well as on the table right in front of him, and while he poured himself another drink, Erwin's jaw tightened, his eyes revolting with unstoppable ocean storm. He felt anger, he felt the madness, and he wanted to tear his head off. A pure rage. As if he was someone else for a moment as if he saw himself getting covered in blood of that disgusting thing sitting in front of him and yet everything that happened was just a long exhale.

"Did he bleed? That's nice, do you have a contact number? I would love to try him. Now I think it's the time to head home, I won't be available for the next two weeks due to the business trip so I'm afraid I have to postpone our pact. I hope that's okay with you, thank you, Mr. Gross." Erwin kept himself calm, he took the number from Gross and shoved it into his pocket. The fat man looked puzzled but the alcohol running in his veins fooled him enough to not suspect anything, and he dumbly consented to everything that Erwin offered. And the blond had no intention of doing business with him whatsoever, he felt utter disgust and it took him a great amount of self-control to not punch him in his balls and rip them off his pants. Again, he politely smiled and left the lounge, meeting up with the others outside.

"Did something happen? Have you guys signed it?" Hange asked, a confusion clearly showing on her face as Erwin slowly shook his head.

"I know the company needs him but he's using men and women in the city, clearly raping them for money and I don't want our company to be involved in such business. I told him I'm leaving for a few weeks, I'll meet with him after that to decline his offer completely. It sounded weird to me to act too hasty now. Let's go back, I have things to finish, everyone."

None of them questioned Erwin.

/*/*/

A few days after the dinner, Erwin decided to tell Mike about everything so he invited him over on Saturday to grill some steaks and watch a good old football match together. Halfway through the evening, Erwin started to drink more beer than usual, and of course, Mike noticed.

"What's wrong, man? And don't lie to me, you know I can smell it when you lie." He pointed to the center of Erwin's chest and smiled friendly at him. Erwin drank another can of beer before talking.

"You remember when I told you that when I'm ready, I'm gonna tell you everything? I think the time has come, Mike."

Erwin spoke for the majority of the evening, and Mike listened. From time to time, he asked some questions to clarify something but most of the time, he stayed silent. And when the blond ended his tiring speech, his long known friend sniffed and smiled at him.

"So now, Erwin, you want me to call to that number and book an appointment with your little crush because he would turn you down if he recognized your voice." He asked just to be sure.

"Yes." Was a blunt and smooth answer, his deep voice echoed in the night air, to some, it could feel soothing. Mike patted Erwin on the shoulder and outstretched his arm.

"Fine, what do we have to offer? From what you've said, it looks like persuading him will be a pain in the ass."

"Oh, not at all. I thought things through, already. Dug up some information and it should not be a problem. Here's what you're gonna say to him, here's the number." Erwin pushed two neatly folded papers in front of Mike and leaned back in his chair again, gripping his can of beer maybe a little too firmly. His expression, though, stayed professional, unreadable. Mike showed a slight sign of surprise in his face when he read the paper with Erwin's instructions and took out his phone.

"You're really thinking too much sometimes, mate. That's insane, he's gonna hate you."

"I'm sure Levi will understand."

"Hah, hopefully. Here I go." He dialed the number his friend gave him and raised the phone to his ear, a few beeps later, an unamused raspy voice sounded.

"_Yea?" _

"Hello, I'm looking for Levi Ackerman."

"_This is he. What the fuck do you want." _

Mike smiled, made a face at Erwin and rolled his eyes. This Levi guy was really something.

"I'd like to schedule an appointment with you. I've heard from Mr. Gross that you provide some sort of entertainment and I'm highly interested in it."

"_Fuck you, I don't do such shit." _

"Pardon me, I didn't want to be rude or anything. It's just I have something I'm sure you're interested in. Would you let me speak?"

"_Tch, make it quick, fucker." _

Mike, again, looked up at Erwin and shook his head, Erwin returned his actions with a blunt smile and nothing more. With a deep sigh, Mike started to read the note.

"I'm highly aware of your sins, not only yours but of sins of your entire squad. There is just too much on you that I can easily turn you to the police and you'll get a death sentence, considering how you've lived up until now, and considering your uncle as well. Mr. Gross didn't get rid of everything, just a few things seem to be missing in your squad's records. Your friends would be locked at a facility where they experiment on people to discover some new technics of how synthetic cells work with organic ones. However, I'm willing to take all of this aside and provide you with a generous amount of money for you and your squad for a month. If you decline my offer, you'll be dead by tomorrow morning and your friends all end up in living hell. So, what do you think?" As Mike said everything Erwin wanted him to, nothing but a long silence was heard from Levi. After a whole minute of nothing, he finally spoke.

"_Fine. When and where?" _

"Very well, I assure you you won't regret your decision. Meet me tomorrow at ten o'clock in the morning, I'll send you the address over a text message. Have a pleasant night, Levi."

And again, only a dead silence rewarded Mike, and nothing more. Levi hung up the phone without even saying goodbye.

"Erwin, that man was rude and mad. The heck, I don't understand what you like about him, he's totally opposite of you and he seems kind of…"

"Honest, strict, straightforward. There's no play in his actions, there's no fakeness. There's just something refreshing in him because, as you may already know, everyone I've tried to date with ended up faking their real personality to make me like them more. He's not trying to impress me at all, and that is exactly what impresses me." Erwin cut Mike short with a small smile lingering on his lips. "Thank you." He added after a while and Mike just waved his hand, saying "anything for you, mate."

*/*/*

Levi halted by the black door he was supposed to find in the left corridor of this building. At least that was what the message said. Curving his lips with disgust, he knocked and waited for some signal. After a brief moment, he heard the lock click and he took that as an invitation. Making sure his face was deadpan without any expression, Levi opened the door and entered a rather small, cozy room. Instructions were clear, enter the room, lock the door and wait for the client to arrive. But something smelled fishy, and before Levi could guess what it was, he heard a deep, low voice saying his name. A familiar voice.

"Levi, it's nice to see you again."

And Levi ridiculously failed the attempt to wear a simple poker face. Instead, he yanked with surprise and turned around too hastily to be considered calm, in fact, he was anything but.

"I'm going to fucking kill you, Erwin-fucking-Smith."

And then Levi attacked Erwin.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

_Summary:_

_This chapter is a mess. Erwin is starting to building up the army._

_Notes:_

_So this chapter shows a little too much of what is going to happen and where the story is heading. It's gonna be more serious than I originally intended. Anyway, I still hope you will like this messy shit :D thank you for your support'! 3_

_(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)_

6.

Erwin saw Levi getting closer, he tried to reason with the man but Levi was too quick. He bent his knees and then jumped to make his movement more violent, kicking the shit out of Erwin's stomach. The blond immediately put his arms over the painful area as if to cover it from more kicks Levi might have had up in his sleeve, and his eyes widened in shock. Once, the perfectly collected man lost his magic and all that was left to him was just Erwin. Making a few steps back while rising one hand in defeat, he tried again.

"Levi, listen to me, I have a proposal for you."

"Shut the fuck up, you stupidly looking chicken with pissed hay instead of hair. I'm not marrying you." Levi shouted, his face filled with anger and rage Erwin had never seen before, as small and tiny as he was, his strength was almost insane, and the blond felt a tingle of fear running down his spine.

"Not that kind of proposal. Levi, it's important to protect your family and friends, hear me out."

"I've already heard enough of your shit so let me get things straight. I'm not buying your bullshit anymore." And with that, he swung his fist, hitting the flawless face with his knuckles so fiercely it made Erwin stumble to the side, and it blurred his sense of vision for a moment.

Erwin felt the burning, he felt it happening from the center of his chest down to his pants. Something felt utterly wrong and when Levi punched him again, he let out a very silent sigh. Fortunately, it didn't sound too weird. Unfortunately, Levi noticed. Stopping just before he made the third swing, he looked up at Erwin and something in his chest tightened.

"I wanted to build a charity for the poor in this town. With your help, we would be able to raise enough money to help everyone at least a little bit. I never wanted to hurt you or your friends. It was just a mask so that I could meet you and discuss this with you." Erwin murmured silently, still out of breath, he looked Levi in the face, his piercing blue eyes once again present, shining through the fields of Levi's soul to the very end of it, where the past intertwined. But Levi didn't want to listen, he didn't want to discuss anything with Erwin, he didn't want this stupidly looking handsome man telling him what to do, he was perfectly fine, he could handle his shit. And yet he gazed up into his eyes and found himself at loss of words. As for the blond, he took it as an invitation to step closer but the second he had done such a thing, the raven swung his fist again and punched him in his jaw. He could almost hear the clack of Erwin's teeth, how he bit his tongue harshly. And a few seconds later, a drop of blood escaped from the very perfect pinkish lips. The tension started to burn their safe ground to ashes, they locked eyes for a moment again, and everything shrunk into a tiny ball of light surrounding them. Why was he so tied up to Erwin? He could almost sense the red string pulling them closer. Closer. Too close. That's when Levi hit Erwin again, and with his last attempt, he yelled at him.

"Fight back, you coward! Or I'm gonna make a punchbag out of you! You won't be recognized tomorrow in your shitty job. Fuck. Fuck you, Erwin. Why are you so calm and collected when I'm fucking beating the shit out of you."

"I'm not." The silent, blunt yet honest answer was everything Erwin gave in return, standing there like someone who just discussed the weather situation far down the south. No concern, no emotions, no nothing. Levi thought that guy is ruthless, stripped of everything that made a human, well, human. His anger yet again playing with his mind that he almost haven't noticed the huge bulge Erwin had in his pants.

"That's not a weapon, is it?" For a moment, Levi asked dumbly, pointing directly at the blond's crotch.

"It depends on how you want to see it but no, it's not its real purpose to serve as a weapon," Erwin replied solemnly, smoothly, his voice showing a little bit of amusement in the back tones but overall, it stayed composed and professional.

"The fuck, Erwin. Am I a fucking joke to you? Why the fuck do you run around horny while you try to persuade me to build a charity? That's fucking unprofessional and disgusting. Get rid of it."

"I'm sorry but I'm afraid it won't be that easy."

"Why the fuck not?"

"I don't want to discuss this any further, please understand that's rather intimate." Erwin tried to recover again, his voice velvety and strong but Levi couldn't be tricked this time so he stepped closer, heart racing, hands sweating, throat tightening, not allowing him to breathe. And instead of giving him a kiss with the fist, he slapped him. Still hard, though.

"Then don't say it. Do it." Levi almost whispered in a low and threatening manner when his palm landed on Erwin's cheek with just the right force to make it red. The taller guy clenched his fists together and Levi took his chance to slap him again.

"Who the fuck gets aroused by someone slapping him? You're fucking disgusting." And when the last slap landed on the blond's left cheek, Levi suddenly moved closer, grabbed Erwin's head and crushed their lips together as he couldn't take it any longer.

He hated the man so much.

But he'd also heard about hate sex and all the benefits that came with it. And right now, Erwin looked like the best man to try it with. Hell if Levi was ever going to accept that he was attracted to him, once was enough and he didn't plan on making any exceptions. But now, he didn't give a fuck. Levi swallowed the rusty taste of Erwin's blood and for some unknown reason, it made him hard, harder than he expected, and harder than he ever wanted. Grabbing his sunny hair, he pulled the blond closer into the darkness of their mutual desires, and with it, the red string of the past found its way into the very center of the heart. Interwoven in every beat of life itself, they finally understood that sometimes, fate speaks of its own and there's no stopping it.

Somehow, this was meant to happen.

"You stinky shitty stupid cockhead. Sit the fuck down or I'll break your legs to make you fucking sit. I can't reach you properly." Levi whispered harshly into Erwin's lips, sliding his tongue across the entire area before moving to his cheek where he landed a soft kiss that even surprised him alone. Erwin fucking Smith smiled and did as he was told. And just a few seconds later, Levi was all over him again, undoing his fly, kneeling before him, taking his hard rock cock in his mouth, making Erwin moan in the most beautiful way he could ever imagine. The act was quick, hasty, unsatisfactory yet filled with tender touches, and when Levi suddenly grabbed Erwin's hand, running his thumb across the top of his palm, his vision blurred and showed him a scenery that he was sure he didn't see before. It just felt weirdly familiar, almost like the feeling of a home.

He could feel tears filling up his eyes as he slowly took the entire length in, and even though the present continued, the past played a movie of its own. And those tears didn't belong to the present. Erwin saw Levi kneeling in the same way as he did now many times before, his dreams showing him scenes of some unknown world where he knew Levi more than anyone else. He knew how Levi loved cleaning, how he liked things simple and straightforward, how he always treasured people, how strong he was. Erwin somehow knew Levi was like that and he didn't even have to ask. His present blurring into a puddle of lust as the past slowly picked up the winds. There was something magical about that moment, something slowly poisoning their hearts with venom so strong that there were no antidotes, something tenderly merging in their worlds. And as their minds wandered through the fields of the mutual past, their bodies felt every little tingle.

Every lick, every kiss, every move. And when their journey started to fade again with Erwin reaching the peak, the vision slowly disappeared too, leaving them both in a state where neither could recognize reality anymore. Levi was, however, first to recover. With Erwin's sperm still in his mouth, he stood up and headed to the door, spitting the cum on the ground next to the exit.

"I fucking don't know what is going on with you but I don't like it. It's fucking weird." And without saying goodbye, he left, leaving Erwin with legs spread open, and a feeling of being a whore. Served him right. Because Levi promised himself he will not lose his cool again.

/*/*/

That night, Levi hosted a stream again. And for the first time in a while, Erwin was not present. Levi checked the blond's profile several times but all he could find was an offline sign. Without even admitting he started to feel irritated because of this very reason, he decided to get rid of the unnecessary feelings by using as many toys as possible, making his fucking ass sore and injured. By one o'clock in the morning, when he cried out of pain instead of pleasure, a direct message popped up on his screen, showing a certain someone he wanted to see the most.

Levi, stop with the torture. I know the guys love it but I don't know how in the hell they're not able to recognize you're in pain. Or maybe they are but that makes it even more twisted.

Levi frowned at his computer, rolled over to the side of his bed, and stood up, slowly stepping closer to the screen and the camera. Throwing the anal dildo away behind his shoulder, he started to rub his cock lazily instead, making just the tiniest of moans that began to tear Erwin's ears apart so violently he thought they might actually bleed.

"What are you doing here, Commander?" Levi suddenly asked out loud, gazing viciously at Erwin on the other side of the wire. "The operation of taking Eren back is about to start and yet, you sneaky little ass managed to visit me just before the departure. Are you afraid you will bite the dust in the process? Or you just had a morning boner, Erwin?"

The past washing away the present, Levi slowly lost his vision of reality.

It all seemed too clouded as if a thick fog assaulted the very senses of sanity. Slowly building up the tension between them, Erwin could hear people screaming in the background, maybe some robbers outside were catching their prey. Maybe someone tried to rape an innocent girl in a deserted alley. And maybe he was just taken aback by Levi's behavior that this all seemed to be perfectly fine. Except for the fact that it wasn't. The surrealism of the moment was almost magical, the little drop of sweat running down his throat, disappearing somewhere in the corner of his mind. The ever so slightly moving lips as Levi spoke, the glistering madness hidden behind his rainy pupils. The touch of a thousand meanings, yet none of them seemed to be enough.  
The sudden impulse of loneliness settled in the wild flows of his thoughts, where the river of despair flushed all his hopes. For that tearing his eardrums apart came not from Levi and his moans, but from the ever-increasing frequency of the sounds of crying, screaming, and madness. The struggle in his mind began to invade his body as well as if a time bomb had exploded in his right upper arm and melted all his nerves into the dense sticky fluid that now hugged him so lovingly. The interplay of trembling vocal cords, the taste of blood in his mouth, and the banging of hoofs were painfully overwhelming as if a herd of horses had just passed by his head. After all, was it Levi who lost the notion of reality or was it him? Erwin couldn't explain the conditions in which he found himself, it was as if his mind and body filled with Levi's presence had soaked deep into a world unknown to him, it was as if it had been Levi who had fomented a struggle for his life within. It wasn't Levi who lost track of reality. It was Erwin.

He blinked a few times, clutching a phone at his ear, a confused voice from Mike on the other side, his computer lying on the coffee table. And a video stream that he didn't visit that day. At all.

"Erwin, are you all right, buddy?" Mike's voice sounded through the phone's microphone, but Erwin could barely notice, staring blankly to the open space of his living room. The fingernails of his left hand were pressing into the skin of his right arm, bloody prints on his white shirt, and tears soaking the soil of his face. A deep breath, the trembling voice of a young boy that didn't seem to belong to him. And the dreams closed in the depths of the night, all cracked in one shattering moment and spilled out in the room of his own hallucinations.

"How do I get to the basement now that I lost my arm?" He murmured softly, leaving Mike shocked on the other side of the connection. But Erwin didn't hear his words, dropped the phone shortly after reassuring him that he was fine and ended the call before falling into a deep slumber.

In the end, Levi hosted a stream and he surely punished himself, but it wasn't Erwin who wrote that message. That message never came. That message didn't exist, and Erwin never visited Levi's stream that night. Levi didn't say anything, Levi didn't know anything. Because Levi simply wasn't there.

How in the world Erwin knew about the stream was a mystery. It was as if they had been bonded with something far greater than they thought, knew and witnessed up to that point.

/*/*/

During the upcoming few weeks, the weather started to be colder, leaves were falling in all sorts of colors and places, signaling the autumn was almost done with its magic. Nature was dying once again, leaving nothing but a dull feeling of emptiness in one's soul.  
Erwin had contacted Gross to set a regular appointment with him on Friday morning, and while he was fully occupied with his work, Mike silently closed the door to the office, making sure they were alone.

"Erwin." He started.

"Yes, Mike? Is there anything I can help you with? I'm pretty busy right now, I need to fill these papers and send them to the printer. Call Nayla, please, she's good at things like that."  
Mike didn't move one bit, he stared at Erwin with a disturbed expression.

"Erwin, what in the bloody hell is wrong with you?"

"Pardon?"

"Ever since that weird call in the middle of the night when you told me about some basement and losing your arm, you've been acting differently. You've been working nonstop, coming to work way too early and leaving in the middle of the night. I'm worried about you, pal. Did something happen that night?" Mike's words melted away as Erwin slowly stood up and patted his friend on the shoulder, giving him a faint reassuring smile.

"Everything's okay, Mike. I know I can't hide anything from you but trust me on this one. There is a lot of work that needs to be done in order to get the most valuable deals possible. If we only focus on making the best moves, we will never get the better of our opponent. When necessary, we must be willing to take big risks and be prepared to lose everything. Unless we change how we fight, we cannot win."  
Mike looked puzzled for a moment, and frowning at his childhood friend, he sniffed.

"I have a feeling I've heard this before."

"You have. Not so long ago, just a lifetime. Now get back to work, I'm planning to shuffle cards a little. Our ship is going to change course a little."

"What are you planning to achieve with this, Erwin?" Mike asked, and although he didn't look convinced, his eyes stayed glued to Erwin with the level of trust one could have towards his brother.

"Obtain freedom for this country. More work opportunities in the future, higher education, salaries and of course, when a family is in a poor life situation, there will be a program that will help them get back on their feet." Erwin murmured, his voice serious and stern, his glowing eyes were piercing Mike's face with fury he had seen somewhere else before but couldn't recall where.

"You're crazy. There's no way Gross and the others would allow such a plan, Erwin. It's a lost battle unless you have a plan to get rid of them all…" Mike's eyebrow elevated, he locked eyes with Erwin and found nothing but determination.

"Shit, man. You're actually planning on taking them down."  
Erwin simply nodded.

He had a plan.

/*/*/

The meeting with Gross was set on nine o'clock in the morning, Erwin knew he didn't have much time to corner the man properly for what he was known for doing, but he simply couldn't make him speak so openly in front of the camera as he did back in the lounge. Carefulness was something he needed the most, with precise steps and facts.

"Erwin, what the heck is all this fizz about?" And when Gross finally came, he, of course, looked puzzled. "I thought we were going to have a regular meeting. What is this?"  
Erwin bluntly smiled at the man, politeness written all over his face.

"A celebration, Mr. Gross. Our company is expanding and I wanted you to be here on such an occasion."

Erwin invited the television and journalists to make a statement at his meeting, and by refusing to discuss the reason for the conference in advance, the crowd was now pushing in front of the hall door, desperate for any information. And when they let the press in, Gross, Erwin and a few others were already seated. Three owners of the largest companies in the city.  
The start went smoothly, but as soon as the hall door closed behind the last stragglers, Erwin rose from his chair and switched off the lights, leaving only the projector in the room turned on. After a short introduction, he started the presentation and began to speak, leaving all the participants in shock.

"According to statistics to this date, over twenty million dollars have been lost, stolen or hidden in the past year. And this amount of money is not final. More than forty percent of the population in this city is indebted, twenty percent is insolvent or under execution. Ten percent of the population is homeless, they live in shelters or on the street. For most of us, statistics like these are just numbers and graphs that won't help you imagine the extent of the problem. And that's why I called a few of my employees and sent them to the streets. I'm going to show you a short video with footage no older than a month." Erwin's voice hovered in the large room, wandering in people's minds in the promise of some understanding. The depth of his tone seemed to send even the least curious ones into the abyss. Something in his speech made people listen, think about the consequences of their acts. Something in his speech erupted into emotional mess traveling through the fields of their hearts. As if the water was lazily flooding through them, silently singing the melodies of thousands of poor families.

Nayla and Erika rose to prepare the video, while Erwin introduced both to the public as faces of his project.

"Erika found the place and did the research while Nayla went to the streets of this city to get the actual footage. These two women also found some very interesting information about the lost money and tracked them down to the owners." And only when Erwin's words slipped off his lips for the last time, the video started.

Streets polluted with the garbage that had no place to be thrown away anymore. Cars filled with unnecessary junk sent by people from middle and upper-class homes. Rats running wherever the eye can see. And then people. People hiding in boxes next to garbage cans, people looking for a piece of food or clothing on the streets. People who tried to feed the family by selling their bodies, their grandmother's jewelry, pieces of their furniture from their homes, or the junk found. Sale of paper for recycling, sale of metals or clothing.

The nightmare seemed too much for the rich when the video showed exactly how the lower class lived. The danger behind every new day, the danger that came with every night. The fear of living, and the fear of dying. The poor and sick people, the fights on the streets. The prostitutes getting beaten for just a little bit of cash so that they could feed their children. The stray dogs, cats. The elder community trying to get medicaments. Everything in just one short video and it was simply too much.

Erwin watched the people in the room the whole time, but the shadows on his face did not let go of any emotions whatsoever. His stony and unreadable expression sitting in his harsh features gave him the impression of inhumanity. Ruthlessness. He stood there with his hands behind his back, almost as if he was ready to fight in a long war. As if he was ready to give orders and send his people to the battlefield to sacrifice their lives.

Erwin looked more like a commander than he did as a president of a business company.

*/*/

Meanwhile, Ronny turned on the TV and scrolled through the programs without any passion, he was clearly bored but then he stopped on one live streaming.

"Hey, Levi. Guess what, your little blond fuck whore is on TV, seriously!" He called loudly into the house and it didn't take much time for Levi to come. His head peeking slightly from behind the door, he glared at the television with a frown.

"No shit."

"Come see for yourself, I can tell you're curious, seriously!"  
Levi slowly walked towards Ronny and took the remoter from him, putting the volume up a bit.

"You weren't kidding. Fuck, what's he doing, fuckbread."

They sat down on the couch and watched the video Erwin made for the public. Levi knew most of the people who were participating in the message. Poor families that he tried to help multiple times, sick or old friends Levi tried to save, he knew them all.

"Ronny, according to the look of the main hall, this place is nearby the central station. Go there and find some information about the case. I don't care who you are gonna ask but be careful. This shit stinks. And I know journalists, they don't give you the full truth, neither does Erwin, I'm fucking sure of that. He looks like he's planning something, playing with them. He's gambling right now. Go. Now."

" 'Sup, okay, I'm going, seriously! Jeez!"

Levi frowned at the screen again.

"The fuck, Erwin…"

/*/*

After the video, Erwin started speaking again. His strong and neat voice resonated in everyone's ears, and no one dared to interrupt him while he spoke. Journalists were eager to write down every possible information without actually knowing what they were going to do with it, and where this whole meeting led to. Gross wiggled a little in his chair and looked to his colleague, Fritz.

"The money that is lost every year was meant to be spent on repairing city buildings, providing better education, general salary increases in urban positions, repairing roads, help voluntary associations, charities or rescue stations, and programs. And people, regardless of their social strata, would feel the change for the better. But if we have the money, where do they go?"

He paused and looked at his colleagues with a blank expression, then turned on the projector again, and a huge tracking system showed up. It was almost like stars popping up at different places on the map.

"We tracked them down. Every lost dollar. Someone in this room has been stuffing their pockets with money that didn't belong to them. Money laundering is a very difficult thing to track down since there are three parts of the process to cover the actual person who's doing it and from where the money goes. But it's possible when you know what to look for. So when I was having a business meeting with Mr. Gross the other day, I told my colleagues to step aside and find something that could be suspicious. And they found out that Mr. Gross and Mr. Fritz had been bonded with unexpected money transactions that came from nowhere. A huge amount of money divided into several smaller parts ended up in the bank with their names on it. It went for a little while and I was able to detect the pattern of their acts. Money obtained from certain crimes, such as extortion, insider trading, drug trafficking, and illegal gambling is dirty and needs to be cleaned to appear to have been derived from legal activities so that banks and other financial institutions will deal with it without suspicion. Money can be laundered by many methods which vary in complexity and sophistication.

The whole process of money laundering has three basic steps. The first involves introducing cash into the financial system by some means, it's called placement; the second involves carrying out complex financial transactions to camouflage the illegal source of the cash, this is layering; and finally, acquiring wealth generated from the transactions of the illicit funds and it's called integration. Some of these steps may be omitted, depending upon the circumstances. So what we know is that they would get the dirty money, split them into several smaller parts that don't look as suspicious as they would if we were playing with the actual amount of cash. This method is called smurfing, a sub-component of this is to use smaller amounts of cash to purchase bearer instruments, such as money orders, and then ultimately deposit those, again in small amounts. We decided to give the evidence to the court and as we speak now, the police are taking necessary steps to stop the criminals. Mr. Gross, Mr. Fritz, I believe you have something to say to us today."

The crowd gasped as Erwin looked at the criminals with a serious expression. A pure shock was written all over their faces, Fritz started typing furiously on his phone but he didn't say a word to Erwin. Gross, on the other hand, stood up, his huge belly ridiculously peeking out of the too-short shirt, sweat already showing on his forehead and in the folds of his fat.

"I'm going to sue you for this! This is a lie and all you want to achieve with this is your own personal growth. You want the money and fame, Smith! This is ridiculous, ha, insane!" He started yelling and Erwin slowly turned to the crowd again.

"We also found out that these two men were tightly cooperating with drug dealing and sale of prostitutes. Youngsters who didn't even turn eighteen yet were sold to brothels without the possibility to run away. Sometimes, even, they would get rid of the sensitive evidence of other criminals to put them to work on the streets of this city. But Mr. Gross was kind enough to provide me with the information himself when we had a meeting. So I dug a little deeper." Erwin's tone flew across the main hall, lingering in the air as a gun pointed to the enemy, ready to fire, shoot, kill. He stood there, tall and unbreakable, and Levi, who watched the entire thing on TV realized just how dangerous the man was. He gave him chills and for once, left him speechless with a weird feeling building up in his chest.

He knew this Erwin Smith. He knew him so very well.

Just a second passed since Erwin's speech ended, just a second before Gross walked towards him, just a second after that he seized Erwin by his arm. And just a second before the police barged in with guns pointing at the criminals. So maybe Erwin had been holding the trigger the whole time, his voice echoing like a gunshot. He was the weapon. A dangerous time bomb, ticking for his enemies to count down their fall.

"Down, down! I said lay down! You're under arrest for money laundering, drug dealing, and pimping! You have the right not to say anything, what you say can be used against you."

"You're gonna pay for this, Smith! I can assure you that this will be your end!" Gross shouted, not listening to the policeman but Erwin didn't show any emotion in return.

And while Gross and Fritz got arrested, he stood there, his statue tall and steady, expression unreadable, and for once again, Levi thought he had seen this Erwin Smith somewhere before. And he could recall that he followed every order, wish or desire back then, not regretting anything. And looking at Erwin now, even from the distance that TV gave them, Levi knew he would follow him everywhere. Without second thoughts. And without regrets. But he needed to know the truth first.

Ronny silently watched the meeting that turned out to be almost an execution of the criminals and registered a pink nest of hair in the crowd. That girl literally ran from one interview to another, listening to everything people had to say. She also questioned Erwin and managed to get some good info. Something that Ronny needed. But he didn't approach her in the room, he merged with the crowd and tried to get something from listening to people, instead. It took him a great deal of time to get a hold of some spicy information, yet he knew Levi wouldn't be happy if he just went home without a good fight and a fair bit of digging. So when the room started to feel more open and empty, he silently went out and blended with the street as if he was just a basic occupant and had nothing to do with the meeting. Taking a cigarette, he stood next to the bus stop while examining the front door of the house, waiting for the right person to show up.

The journalists left around noon with Erwin, who was still answering their questions. But Ronny didn't want to know the fairy tales they fed their surroundings and the media, Ronny wanted to know more. The pink-haired girl had left amongst the lasts, taking notes on her way. The annoying pink woman. And as she walked into one of the side streets, Ronny followed her. The relatively rich neighborhood was soon replaced by one of the poorer and more dangerous ones, and he would swear to his balls that such a lady could not live in it. The fog began to fall slowly, wrapping their footsteps in its robe, and then suddenly ... the woman disappeared. Ronny halted beside one of the back entrances to the fast-food restaurant, the smell of spoiled meat and burnt oil was so strong that it made him sick.

"Why are you following me?" A silent question sounded from the dark corner of the street where the pink-haired girl stood with the stun gun in her hand, ready to defend herself. Her big blue eyes seemed to glow in the gloom, and Ronny found himself staring at them with too much enthusiasm.

"You're good, really, when did you notice me?" He asked dryly, her weapon obviously not frightening him.

"A few blocks back, you're not very unobtrusive. Either you are too sure of yourself and you think I'm stupid. Or you don't care that I know what you're doing."

"These streets aren't safe for a lady like you. You're too annoying not to piss pests off."

"I was born here, I know how to defend myself."

"Sure, sure ..." It only took him ten seconds, a few quick movements and then, a stun gun lying on the ground, abandoned, while Miss's back greeted the moldy wall, and Ronny prevented her from escaping with his body pressing strongly against her own.

"If you want to rape me, use a condom, please ..." Her voice was stuck in her throat, she swallowed hard several times, leaving the notepad fell out of her hands as lightly as the stun gun. Ronny grimaced.

"Dude, I don't want to rape you, seriously!"

"Then ..."

"I want some information, you know something, you are from the media, I figured already, yes, you hide a lot of things. If you give it to me, I'll let you go." His voice muffled into a mere whisper, hoarse in the silence, gave the impression of danger. She shivered in his arms.

"That's very expensive freedom." She gasped softly, her big eyes fixed on his face with a mixture of fear and defiance. There was something in her after all. And he liked it. The spark in her look.

"Freedom is overrated, we are all slaves to something."

Their eyes met for a moment, the world of blue seas and the dark corners of the green forests. It was as if the endless oceans were fighting with the depths of poisonous swamps from where there was no escape. His eyes dropped to her lips, her cheeks turned pink.

"What's your name?" He asked with a gaze firmly locked on her face, the soft wrinkles forming a complex expression that was difficult to understand.

"Shay. You?" She whispered almost breathlessly, her lower lip shaking gently as she spoke. And he noticed every small change, every eyelash framing her big eyes that locked him in the hell of his own emotions.

"Ronny ..." And then he snapped back to reality and pressed her against the wall again. "The information," he recalled.

"What information do you want? All I have now is a notebook." She turned her head away and closed her eyes as if she expected him to hit her for her response. But nothing like that happened.

"What do you know about Erwin Smith?" A question.

"Huh?" A shrug.

"I need to know his plans, really!" The demand.

"No one knows Erwin's plans ... I ... I'm sorry." And then the silence.  
But when Ronny didn't answer for a while, she spoke again, her voice trembling.

"Rumor has it that he has contacts all over the city and finding some decent information is almost impossible because he hides every step carefully. I've heard he's planning some expeditions outside the city but he would have to get permission from the government because it's forbidden to go to the wild and to visit other cities that are overseas. There is no guarantee there are people, let alone safety. I'm not even sure such a thing is possible but... that's what I've heard."

"Why the fuck would he try to make this city a better place for living then?" Ronny frowned.

"He wants to give people a purpose," she silently answered, shaking her head, "but it's just something I've heard. Will you let me go, please?"

Ronny did, and while watching her back disappearing into the thick fog, he decided not to tell Levi everything. Maybe he wanted Erwin to give Levi a purpose too. A bigger one.

_Notes:_

_So. What will Levi do now? And what the hell Erwin really wants?_


	7. Chapter 7

_Summary:_

_Where Levi gets a job offer and thanks to his followers on the erotic website, he's able to perform in the club to get more money._  
_Erwin gets drunk, Levi flirting with Mike and so on._

_Notes:_

_So as I said in the summary, Levi gets an offer to dance in the club and it's basically because he has a huge amount of followers on his streaming website so he's kinda well known in this area._

_I wanted this chapter to be more relaxed and not full of political drama so here it goes._

_Thank you so much for your support!_

7.

So what Ronny told Levi, was just a cut version of what he had heard. And somewhere on the road, he started to feel like he betrayed the man who gave him a home. But he also thought it was for the greater good so he just went with it, gambling with Levi's trust as if it all was just a fucked-up game.

But it was a game.

/*/*/

The night was cold, and Levi hid himself in the thick fabric of his coat to prevent more warmth from escaping his body. Three days had passed since Erwin's meeting and the raven haven't heard of him yet, and now feeling a bit frivolous, he decided to try his luck in a place where he originally met him. The streaming site. He was too eager to wait, too impatient to get home first, too angry to admit Erwin had been on his mind a lot recently. Roaming through the fields of night streets, he launched the website and logged in from his phone, immediately checking if the blond was online. No such luck.

"Fuck with this stupid ass cockhead. He wants me to beg for his attention or what." After a few additional minutes, a lot of swearing, and one lost dignity, Levi dialed Erwin's number and waited for the man to answer.

A deep velvety voice sounded from the microphone, making Levi regret his decision almost instantly.

_"Levi, what a pleasure to hear from you."_ Despite the words Erwin had used, Levi could hear the hollow sound in their meaning, he could hear a clear lie in his voice. After last time, when Levi had left Erwin in the hotel room as an old naughty whore, it wasn't even surprising.

"Listen, motherfucker, I'm gonna say this once so don't make me repeat myself, clear?"

"_Why, of course. I'm listening, what is it that you want to tell me?"_

Levi hesitated, furrowing his brows violently, remembering the time they shared mutual touches, their proximity being intoxicating to the point where it almost hurt. And a huge lump appeared in his throat, making him unable to speak coherently.

_"Levi? You still there?"_

"Yes, you fucking piece of shit! I'm still fucking here. Duh, forget it, whatever, fuck you." And with that, he hung up.

Erwin didn't contact him for the rest of the week. It was Monday.

*/*/*

During the next week, Gross and Fritz both had their trials and were sentenced to 15 years in jail with maximum security. Their estate would go to the local hospital for better healthcare, and for some new charities, Erwin made sure of that. So maybe he used their money to build charity and win over the citizens of the city but who the fuck actually cared?

He was fully occupied with his work to notice he hadn't spoken to Levi for a whole week, it almost looked like he didn't care at all. His weird visions faded into the heavy rain that ever so lovingly poured its melody down from the cloudy skies, and gave Erwin some peace of mind, as if the water gently caressed the inside of his heart, the cold chills whispering on the surface of his skin. He loved it, the rain, the chills in the air, the freezing wind, colorful falling leaves. He loved the season. And fortunately, it rained a lot.

One evening, Mike showed up in Erwin's office with a wide smile, tossing him a stack of papers while amusingly rubbing circles onto the neatly polished wooden desk as if trying to make Erwin mad.

"The papers about the case just came, I printed them out, sent message to the rest of the team, it should reach the right place tomorrow just before noon. The plan you've created for the charity will start running on three days, we're expecting the donations will be quite generous. Thanks to you, that is."

"Good, we will continue with this strategy for a while, and after we receive the trust of the residents of the city, we will go even further into the system. Good job, Mike." Erwin was a little hoarse yet Mike could see the little spark of determination that rested behind his oh-so-very beautiful blue eyes.

"Hey, are you finished yet? We were wondering if you would like to join us for a few drinks in the club nearby. Apparently, it's a show night today, some sexy chick dancing, even some males for ladies." Mike suggested with a smile and two large puppy eyes, only he could make it look awkward and stupid.

"I really shouldn't, I have a lot of work to do, Mike." Erwin shook his head but that wouldn't be Mike if he just gave up so easily.

"Oh come on, buddy. You need this more than we do. Come, I don't wanna hear any protests. You can thank me later!" Erwin chuckled a little, still shaking his head in disbelief.

"You know, you're right. I think I need a drink. Meet me in twenty at the parking lot. Just gonna stack these up and I'm done."

*/*/*

Mike, Nayla, Hange, Erika, and Erwin arrived at the club at around half-past seven in the evening, sat down at the bar and ordered their drinks. The whole place was tuned in dark tones, and in style, it could be compared to steampunk with elements of a modern touch. The semicircular bar desk about 4 meters long, resembled a cogwheel and a metal bar stool was artificially constructed in each of its grooves. Behind the desk where the waiter was serving and preparing drinks, the whole wall was filled with various alcoholic beverages, the bottles of which were often strange in shape. Ordinary light bulbs without any decorations hung from the ceiling, waiting for someone to bump into them. Sitting at the bar was reasonable because it had the best view at the stage as it was directly opposite of it, and there were only a few metal tables in the space between them and a small parquet floor right in front of the podium.

The show itself began after eight o'clock when most of the visitors sat down and the newly arrived customers were led to the club through a different corridor so that no one would disturb the performance. Erwin and the others had their third beer and were just starting to take shots when the first lady stepped on stage. As for her appearance, she was very attractive, blond hair and blue eyes with a mildly dangerous sparkle in them. Her performance was a sexy burlesque chair dance. A couple of back dancers were in black garments, while a woman introduced by commentators like Madame Annie was dressed in a bright red costume. The show had everything, drama, madness, and sex, even though none of the dancers got naked. Mike was staring at the stage all the time, and here and there he ever so casually pointed something out, as for how good her ass was, nice breasts, or how beautifully she danced. Nayla asked Erika to dance with her but was strictly declined so she perused Mike and Hange instead, and the three of them headed to the dance floor. Erwin stayed with Erika, they ordered another drink and started talking.

"You don't like to dance that much, huh?" She asked casually while sipping her Cuba libre cocktail. Erwin smiled at her and shrugged.

"I don't mind dancing, it's just that I don't have the right partner to do it with, I guess. If you know what I mean."

Erika looked over her shoulder to the dance floor, her eyes clearly stopping on Nayla, and she smiled fondly. "Yes, I think I know what you mean," she said quietly.

Other performances took place in a similar vein, some danced modern dances, some did an entertaining show, some danced classical dances, but before 10 pm no show was erotic. Erwin began to feel the corners of his lips rising up uncontrollably, his head was lighter, and his vision blurred a little, which, of course, was caused by the alcohol he drank during the evening. Around eleven, a commentator reappeared on the stage to announce that the first male performance was approaching. And as Erwin was not interested in the ladies show, this genre did not create any excess emotions as well, so he ordered another drink and turned his back to the stage uninterestedly.

A long inhale, a slight clink of the glass, the air heavy in the lungs. The sound of moving heavy equipment, and then ... Then the first beat of the music. The melody, which at first seemed to gasp its tones of increasing despair, had dug deep into Erwin's ears and forced him to turn around. What he saw then was just smoke rolling between the speakers, the headlights, and the black pole that towered to nearly four meters in height. A small silhouette in the play of lights stood with its back to the people. A silhouette of a man.

_Save me, you should never break me, you're the thing that makes me be afraid of myself._

The man wore a black cropped leather jacket with two wings crossed on his back, white pants with straps around his thighs and calves, and black leather boots. Holding two long swords, he swung them in the air when the first words of the song sounded, making an illusion of a fight, the thick fog around him shivering because of the insane speed he had moved with. His movements were violent, desperate and somehow grateful, as if he truly danced on the battlefield. And then he turned to face the crowd and Erwin's breath got stuck in his throat as he locked his eyes with the man on the stage.

Levi, it was Levi.

The raven smirked, threw the swords on the ground, leaving them to their faith as he jumped and gripped the pole in the mid-air. Erwin's mouth fell open, the smaller man climbed up to the very top of the pole and lifted his whole body on his two arms to the position that resembled the letter X, and from there slowly locked his legs with the pole to perform a simple inverted crucifix. And then he dropped. Almost to the fucking ground, finishing the move with a simple middle finger raised in the air.

The crowd gasped as Levi seemed to fall at unbearable speed. Just above the ground, however, with a creaking sound of his clothes rubbing against the pole, he stopped and slung down over his shoulder to gracefully sit in front of the pole. The long alabaster fingers slowly found their way to the zipper of his jacket to unfasten it after a short while, letting that piece of clothing slip off his shoulders. He touched the metal of the pole behind him, grabbed it, and lifted his body upside down in a smooth motion resembling a windmill. The full moon of his dance.

Erwin was busy staring, it was breathtaking, crazy, unbelievable, and maybe ... maybe it was an unstoppable desire that he couldn't explain. Levi seemed to be gracefully moving across the battlefield, as if to win a duel at any moment, to cut through the titans' necks. He frowned and wrapped his fingers around his glass more tightly, sipping his drink shortly after. He felt cold sweat running down his spine, yet he couldn't avert his gaze.

And with another loud bang of music, the feeling of the performance slowly changed, remodeled and rebuilt into a new one. And right then, Erwin was fucked.

Swinging hips to the beat of the music, leather belts glistening in the headlights, and the first piece of his exposed skin, which most of the audience gazed at mercilessly. Erwin swallowed hard and loosened his tie. Erika watched him discreetly, a soft smile on her face.

The fabric of his shirt slid slowly over his shoulders, arms, and back, gradually revealing his masculine back and chest. Hearing the ladies whistle, Levi raised his gaze slowly and pointed it toward the audience, lazily running it over the ladies' faces to stop right on Erwin. He bit his lip, ran his fingers across the crotch, and tossed his shirt on the dance floor, where Mike accidentally caught it. Not knowing that this was the Levi, he waved with the caught shirt at the dancer, laughing, and then tied it around his wrist playfully. Levi replied with an amused smirk and another swing of his hips. Mike laughed and whistled as well.

"You go, man! Strip down and I'll buy you a drink, bro!"

Levi looked over his shoulder to Mike and walked over to the edge of the stage, sliding down to a split while locking his eyes with the big blond man.

"Sure, buy me some drinks, bitch, and I'll fucking undress for you." He said, sliding his leg from the split so he could stand up again.

"It's a deal!" Mike shouted playfully, he was drunk and even though he wasn't interested in guys, the alcohol did its magic and crushed his boundaries completely. This was fun.

Erwin watched the exchange between Levi and Mike, and even though he didn't know what the two men had said, a wave of jealousy rose inside of his chest. He ordered another drink for himself and Erika, who accepted it with a quiet thanks on her lips but dared not say anything against it. Apparently she knew something was happening.

Levi went back to the center of the stage, a heavy mist slowly wrapping its arms around his body, giving him shelter from those curious eyes in the room. Scenery like from another world, the leather straps of his trousers slowly fell to the ground, as if forming a path directly to the man dancing in the shadows. The sweat droplets gleamed on his body like little crystals, and whenever he turned to the crowd, his eyes sought out only one person. They seemed to provoke, as if encouraging to act, to escape, to fight. What for? So close and yet so far away. Erwin.

The degree of sexuality in one dance was almost insane, but in spite of that, there was some kind of pain, danger, and mystery. Levi was able to do a show that caught everyone around him with its claws, not letting them escape from it. The silent despair hidden behind the graceful movements of his hips, the agonizing desire for a simple touch in every caress of fingers on his bare skin, and a world full of forbidden fruit behind his lashes whenever he turned to the audience. A gray screen of his eyes looked like dark clouds just before the storm. And a white mist forcibly enveloping emotions in the guise of perdition.

The belt clattered loudly against the floor as Levi nonchalantly dropped it and looked back into the crowd once again. His fingers hooked around the hem of his trousers and the Raven glared at Erwin as he bent down slowly and stripped off the trousers completely.

Erwin took off his tie and unbuttoned two buttons on his shirt. He was hot, a small drop of sweat trickling down his temple, and a large lump settled in his throat that could not be swallowed. Levi did it on purpose, he already knew. But in spite of this awareness, his eyes glided over the dancer's exposed body, examining each part of it, every movement of his muscles as his body tensed and relaxed in the waves of dance. And he couldn't take his eyes off. His mouth was dry, his head empty, his chest screaming, and his pants tightening. That's how he felt, and he knew Levi had planned exactly that.

_Don't tell me you're sorry, just say a thing to stop me. Help me break the silence, come and save me from myself._

The show was approaching its demise as Levi skilfully moved around the stage, danced around the pole, lifted his half-naked body upside down, hooked his heel on the pole, and put his other leg behind him, showing a split on the pole, the move called extended butterfly. Dressed only in white boxers, his ass and crotch stood out in that tight little clothing. Erwin started to drool.

And as Levi slowly hugged the pole with his strong calves, he freed his hands to let them wander across his body, slowly touching every bit of the fair skin, rubbing soothing circles on his sides while sitting skilfully on the pole as if it was nothing. The bare skin that touched the shining metal turned a little red, Erwin noticed, but Levi didn't look like he cared. He, once again, showed his back to the audience, still sitting on the pole, yet his movements changed a little this time. He locked his ankles together, squeezed his thighs harder to let the skin grip the pole more securely, and then he leaned back. Back, back until he was completely upside down, holding his body only with his legs. He glared at Erwin again, Erwin gulped. Levi smirked and touched his nipples ever so slightly, Erwin frowned.

And then the game had begun.

With Erwin watching him, Levi moved his hand towards his crotch again, giving it a gentle squeeze before moving towards his lips to lick his fingers. He was teasing him. And Erwin had surely felt that.

Levi slowly slid down the pole, placing both of his hands on the floor so he could slowly straighten himself to a proper handstand with legs wide open to a middle split. And then he rotated, he rotated like a fucking Beyblade, spinning on one hand for a few seconds before landing on his knees. His dancing skills were full of unsaid battle, he looked like he was fighting for life every time he moved. And with the end of the show, he just kneeled there, letting the fog to embrace him slowly, carefully. Gripping the fabric of his boxers, he started pulling, panting, and pulling again. And then the music stopped for a tiny second, and a loud tearing noise sounded with a soft groan coming from Levi's mouth. His underwear tore apart, revealing the gold gem of his little show to the crowd. Mike whistled, ladies gasped, and Erwin almost fell from the bar chair.

Soon after, however, Levi covered his manhood with his palm, stood up and bowed to the crowd, who began cheering loudly. The raven pointed indecently at Mike, raising his eyebrows provocatively.

"Go order me the promised drink, asshole, I'll be right back."

"Rely on it, bro! I'll meet you at the bar!" Levi left the stage and Mike, still with his shirt wrapped around his wrist, left Nayla with Hange on the dance floor and headed for Erwin and Erika at the bar.

"His show was great, wasn't it? I don't usually enjoy these male shows, but he managed to bring elegance and sex appeal into the masculine performance, it was refreshing." He laughed heartily and patted Erwin on the shoulder as he sat down on one of the bar stools.

"You should return it," Erwin said dryly, not looking at his friend at all, and downed his drink in one huge gulp.

Mike glanced at Erwin, confusion written all over his face, and opened his mouth as if to say something, but before he could do anything at all, a small hand fell on his forearm and stopped his flow of thoughts.

"Ah, here you are, I was just about to order ... Eh, what's your name?"

"Leo. And I'll have a shot of rum, blondie." Levi replied without hesitation, his gaze fixed on the taller blond man with the hand still anchored to his forearm. He wore a plain white shirt with rolled-up sleeves and black trousers. And he surely didn't make it easy for Erwin as ignored his person entirely and devoted himself to Mike instead. Levi took a seat between the two men and took his ordered drink. Meanwhile, Erika slipped unobtrusively from her stool and headed for Nayla and Hange, perhaps as a result of the sudden tension that was slowly rising around the men.

"So, Leo… let me introduce you, I'm Mike and this is Erwin, my business partner, and best friend. Erwin, this is Leo, the most impressive dancer I've ever seen. Cheers on that."

Mike laughed contentedly and raised his glass to them, but Erwin straightened up, and it seemed that he was going to leave, but eventually, he stretched out the glass to them for a toast.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Leo. It is indeed true that such a dancer is not seen every day. Tell me, is dancing your livelihood or just a part-time job?" Erwin's voice was utterly devoid of emotion, only a fair smile played on his face, which was not even half honest, and Levi could see storms, bolts of lightning, and tornadoes of all sorts of emotions behind the blue of his deep eyes. Instead of fear, however, it forced him to act. He leaned a little closer to Mike and tilted his head to the side as his eyes traveled across Erwin, unable to stop his face from contorting into a deadly glare.

"Only when someone requests me to do a fucking show and pays well, I don't particularly like exposing my body that much, I feel so embarrassed." He said without even flinching one bit, and Erwin had to forcefully stop himself from laughing hysterically at his words, but then again, a huge hand flattened upon Levi's back as Mike pulled him closer into his embrace, playfully noting: "Oh my, I would never guess such an innocence is hiding under your skin, haha. Dude, bro, did you hear? It's unbelievable." Erwin put on his perfect smile and gazed up at Mike, nodding.

"I would never think he's like that, you know what I mean, Mike, right?" And his friend frantically laughed, patting Erwin on the shoulder, who frowned at his friend for touching Levi, yet obviously, he didn't say anything.

"Like what?" Levi asked, dumbfounded.

Mike chuckled, Erwin coughed. They were both very drunk at that time. Levi glared.

"We didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable or offended but… is it possible that you are actually a virgin, Leo? You look so young." Mike asked with a clear interest in his voice, blinking innocently.

"Huh?!" A sharp exhale escaped from Levi's lips before he could stop it, but seeing Erwin's face getting so caught up in the moment, he decided to play with it to punish him.

"Would you let me fuck you if I was?" He added right away, looking directly at Mike. Erwin downed another shot when he heard that, almost drowning himself in the sweet taste of the alcohol.

"Haha, why not, bro, I've never tried it with a man before, it sounds like fun! Haha, but I'd rather fuck you from behind, you know. Cheers on your gorgeous ass, we're having another drink, it's on me!" Mike hugged Levi even more tightly, smiling like a total nutcase, his cheeks red from the amount of alcohol he had had that night, and his eyes shining with mischief.

"Oh, Erwin, my man, why the sour face, I promise I'll leave you out of the details, don't worry about it!" One thing was crystal clear: Mike was completely wasted. It was then when Erwin started to wonder whether he would have to punch someone in the face to feel better or he would have to leave to not punch anyone in the face, it was a hard decision. With this situation being thrown directly at his face, he didn't even know if Mike was being sincere or he was just messing with them both. It wasn't his friend's fault but it didn't stop him from being mad. And he couldn't really blame him, Levi was… beautiful in his own special way.

*/*/*

After another hour of endless booze, annoying flirting, fleeting touches, and silly laughter, Erwin decided he had had enough. His head buzzed with suppressed thoughts, his forehead burned due to constant frowning, his mouth dried up and no more words were good enough, Levi looked tired of Mike's drunken jokes, and Hange returned after Erika took totally drunk-fuddled Nayla home. Erwin wanted to go home. If only going home was as easy as coming here, because it wasn't. The world gazed at him through a blurry glass, and to make a single step seemed almost impossible. Something was wrong, maybe he drank too much, but how could anyone blame him? Levi was Leo, Mike was an asshole, he was a double asshole. Hange was Hange. Everything merged together like a puzzle.

"Hey, boys. Are you okay? The giant looks like he's about to kiss the floor fiercely. Should I escort him home?" Hange asked with a raised eyebrow, for Mike was as wasted as Erwin, except the fact he couldn't pretend to be alright as the other blond managed.

"Yes, please. Thank you, Hange, I'll be heading home, too." Erwin said, and although Hange gave him a very suspicious look, she nodded.

"Will you be okay, Erwin?"

"Yes, don't worry about me, I'm not as drunk as Mike." And this statement was true, his friend couldn't even talk anymore, much to Erwin's relief.

"I will accompany you." Levi suddenly spoke, and Erwin intervened.

"No, you won't, because ..."

"Yeah, I'm sure I will. Shut up and let me, you shitty shit." Levi butted in with a glare, the game was over, Leo left ...

"Jesus, language!" Hange screamed as she tried to hold the big mountain of meat that Mike was.

"You fucking shit." Levi corrected himself and Hange burst out laughing, almost dropping Mike to let him really kiss the floor.

"Wow, oookay, Erwin, I'll see you at work! Mike, darling, you stupid dumbass, come!" And she left.

Erwin turned to Levi as they orphaned, his expression somewhere on the brink of the abyss between a completely unreadable and incredibly open to all emotions like a geyser.

"Come," Levi commanded.

Erwin sighed but followed the little man's steps to hell more than willingly. Levi offered him storms, disasters, hell, madness. And Erwin was crazy about all this, for in his too-planned life Levi was like a breath of new wind, like an unexpected earthquake or a tsunami. He was a natural disaster, he was anarchy in the world of order. And Erwin couldn't resist, his presence was like a drug, unpredictable, and always strong, stronger, irresistible. And he got lost. On the way home, he gazed at his neck, the way his fine, short-cut hair stood up in the surrounding cold, watching the tips of his ears blush, his hand holding his body tight so he wouldn't fall. Most of the way they went in complete silence, but as it slowly came to an end, Erwin spoke.

"So... Leo, you say?"

"You didn't really think I would just tell anyone my real name," Levi said abruptly.

"You have it on the website." Erwin reminded him boldly.

"Yeah, but I couldn't risk it this time, I couldn't be sure you didn't blab about me with him. That way I prevented stupid questions and a fucking embarrassing situation."

"True, fair enough."

Levi unlocked the door and shoved Erwin inside, although he could still speak quite normally, his legs were more tangled than the earphone cables. So it was no surprise that, with a strange giggle, he crashed into the drawer at the door and almost fell over it to the ground. Levi rolled his eyes and grabbed his right arm, a strange wave of energy piercing through both of them, forcing them to stop in everything they had been doing. Erwin looked back and slowly met Levi's gaze, swallowing loudly. Levi felt a strange gust of anxiety in his chest, as if he wanted to follow the man in front of him and protect him from the pitfalls of the hostile world. The look they had shared at that very moment was intense, full of pain, desire and mutual understanding. They seemed closer to each other than they would have ever admitted. Levi's eyes dropped to Erwin's lips, Erwin opened his mouth and exhaled softly, tilting his body forward, closer, too close. The Raven gripped his arm more tightly and hissed.

"Oi, Erwin ..."

"Yes, Levi?"

And then they heard footsteps, Levi blinked, shook his head, and pushed Erwin up the stairs.

"You'll wake up the whole house, you asshole, go upstairs and wait for me there."

"Levi?" A gentle, feminine voice sounded as the little lady's silhouette came out of the kitchen to see what was going on at the front door.

"Yea, Petra, it's me. I was at work, the shift was longer than expected, don't worry." Levi responded softly as he put the drawer back into its rightful place, and took off his shoes. "I'm going straight to bed, goodnight."

"Okay, but don't push yourself too much, you're saving us enough, thank you for being here." She smiled softly at him and then turned back to the kitchen where a whistling kettle was asking for her attention.

"Sure, don't worry." And with that, he ran up the stairs, where Erwin was waiting for him, draped over the rail. His blue eyes slowly followed each step of the host, a look so intense that Levi felt it would soon burn him alive. Without a word, he led him into the bathroom to let him take a shower, and in the meantime, he prepared some sleeping clothes. After a long half-hour, he finally led him to his room and locked the door.

"I've seen this room so many times ..."

"Yeah, shut up and go to bed. You're barely standing, you're drunk like a fucking pig, and I don't understand how you can speak so casually."

Erwin moved slowly towards the bed, throwing himself on it like a sack of potatoes. With his head buried in Levi's pillow, he inhaled the addictive scent and murmured softly into the fabric, Levi barely understanding what he was saying.

"I don't know what is it with you, but I can't shake off the feeling of knowing you all my life. Maybe even farther than just life."

"What I know is happening to you is an excess of fucking alcohol in your blood. You didn't even look like you cared today, so don't bullshit me here and go to sleep." Despite his hard attitude, he walked over to the bed and slowly pulled his blanket over Erwin to cover him. The blond turned abruptly, grabbed Levi's hand and pulled him down.

"That was an obvious lie, Levi." He said, his lips almost glued to the ear of a young black-haired man who had to put his hands on the bed at either side of Erwin's head to keep himself from falling completely on the blond man.

"You're talking shit, Erwin, you're drunk, and I don't care." Levi hissed back, but the bigger man's lips, which just touched the skin beneath his ear, gave him goosebumps and an electric shock ran through his body. Fucking Erwin.

"Levi ... Captain, my captain… " He said ever so gently, Levi closed his eyes and exhaled under the onslaught of that tone. Erwin's hand slowly disengaged from his grip, gently stroked the skin on his palm, rose up to his face, and then slowly sank into the duvets. For a moment there was nothing but silence in the room. Erwin fell asleep.

"My commander, maybe you're worthy of my trust."

Levi whispered.

Was it really a game?

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

8.

Through the half-opened window, cold air drifted into the dark room, tickling on bare skin and stealing heat from the body. The rustle of leaves outside was accompanied by a distant chime of the church clock. It was four o'clock in the morning.

The fresh air of the bedroom was poisoned by the interplay of darkness that had settled heavily on Erwin's chest. With each passing second, the pressure deteriorated, taking away his breaths and freedom, harassing his heart quietly with its power. He knew he was dreaming, he knew it was only sleeping paralysis, he knew its effects. The magic behind it. Except for the fact that it wasn't the case here.

Someone was suffering somewhere, in the room, the inaudible cry of a soldier who had not yet paid off his debts from the past. And now the soldier was filled with fantasies, hallucinations he couldn't separate from reality. As if he saw his hands covered in blood, and his soul torn into ridiculous shreds on the battlefield.

"Wait… I swore to him…" A very weak whisper resonated in the room, making Erwin's eyelids shiver in recognition. His eyes snapped open right after that little sound, directly facing Levi leaning over him, sitting on his chest with outstretched arm towards his neck, and a small knife flickered in the dark. Erwin could feel the strong grip Levi was holding him down with. He could feel the cold steel pressing on the soft skin of his throat. He could feel the hotness of Levi's thighs touching his chest. He could feel Levi's pain that glinted in the fierce grey of his eyes. The chilly breeze traveled across the room from the opened window, hitting Erwin's bare feet and torso once it landed, making him shiver. And with it, the first sting of fear kicked him in the guts.

"Levi…" Erwin said carefully, freeing one arm so he could lift it up to slowly encircle his fingers around Levi's tiny wrist. The dullness in the raven's eyes slowly faded, melting away his hallucinations with Erwin's strong grip. The blond quickly snatched the knife and tossed it under the bed before the smaller guy could take the notice. And Levi blinked twice, totally dumbfounded, totally confused, and to Erwin's liking, totally fucking cute.

"What the fuck, Erwin…"

"Nice to see you too, Levi. Good morning, by the way." Erwin's tone held a little bit of amusement but it was muted by the seriousness and the fear lingering in his bright blue eyes.

"I assume it wasn't your intention to sit on me so shamelessly, am I right? I also don't remember committing to this and even though I hate running to any conclusions, this still looks like you tried to molest me during my sleep?" He continued, and with every said word, Levi's ears began to turn red.

Trying to recover smoothly, the Raven spat, "Tch, no way in fucking hell, you're not even my type." And Erwin smiled politely at that, not looking very convinced.

"I see, that's a pity, here I thought you told me you don't… Let me phrase it as you said it - _You don't fuck with everyone._ So I guess me and Mr. Gross were your exceptions? But to be honest with you, I don't think I look like Mr. Gross, Levi." As Erwin spoke, Levi's originally narrowed eyes widened, his lips leaving a gasp so sudden he couldn't stop it from escaping. They stared at each other for a moment, neither said nor did anything, the tension gradually rising, and when it reached the peak, Levi whispered.

"Get out."

"Not trying to recover this time, Levi? Maybe Mike could help you with that." What the hell was he jealous of? Erwin felt a tingle of anger bubbling in his chest.

"I swear to the fucking nonexistent god, Erwin." Levi's tone was merciless, quiet and dangerous. Erwin, on the other hand, was full of adrenaline, slowly giving back Levi everything the man had pissed him off with last night. But it wasn't wise to tease such a beast inside of that small body of his, Erwin knew. But their pride was way too much to handle at that moment.

"I'd love to but a certain someone is still sitting on my chest." Erwin pointed out. Levi hissed and slowly got off him, moving to the side while Erwin sat up and dropped his legs off the bed, placing them on the soft carpet.

"You know, Levi… I still think there is some sort of fate going on between us. It doesn't matter how many times we try to escape, how much we struggle to not get involved, how much we want to not care, we still end up facing each other. In one way or another, it seems like a masochistic game I've never signed to play but… I can't help myself but enjoy the ride. You're like a fast and furious storm in my unmoving and calm paradise. As much as I hate to admit it, you never cease to amaze me, Levi." Erwin stood up, slowly put on some clothes, as if waiting for Levi to respond. To say something, anything. But the raven stayed silent, not looking at Erwin at all, his heart erratically pounding against his chest, almost as if trying to break free, to break his fucking ribs and run away from all this. The tips of his ears were red, signaling embarrassment. He didn't know what to feel anymore, this strange mixture of anger, frustration, loneliness, and compassion was playing with his head and Erwin was, once again, the one pulling the trigger, shooting him with his words, making him both bleed from pain and scream from pleasure. The uneasiness was creeping in his insides, gripping every emotion and crushing it with a fierce desire that reflected dimly in Erwin's blue eyes. The guy was a fucking bitch, acting all angry and then throwing these words at Levi, it made a mess out of him and yet, he had a disturbing feeling that was exactly what Erwin wanted, he wanted to confuse him so that he would lose track of what was happening. And maybe, just maybe, Erwin had emotions, too, and they were attacking his usually calm and professional persona, and they caused the loss of his mask and something like real Erwin Smith popped up on the surface.

"How did you know about Gross?" A raspy voice came, Erwin halted by the door and turned around, smiling slightly.

"Even I can have some secrets, Levi. If you really want to know, you have to come closer, I can't shout it out loud, can I?"

"Tch, whatever, I'll lead you to the front door." The pride was just too much pain in the ass, and it didn't want to flush all the shit he was feeling at that moment down the fucking toilet. He wanted to know, though. _Oh God, _how desperately he wanted to know.

They left the room quietly with Levi taking the lead, glaring at the empty hallway in front of him, trying to recollect his stoic face once again. And maybe because Levi was so deep in thought, he didn't notice two voices slowly coming upstairs. There was a silent click behind him, and Erwin disappeared, just a second later, one big - _huge - _hand covered his mouth quickly, pulling him to the darkness of a little closet Levi's family used for storing old stuff. His back strongly pressed to the wooden wall behind him while his chest ached to get more of the fucking warmth Erwin's body was producing.

"What the fuck, Erwi-" Levi snapped but was silenced with that damned - _strong and demanding - _hand again, Erwin then looked down at him and put a finger over his own lips, and Levi got the message.

The world had stopped. Their eyes locked, Levi grimaced, Erwin frowned, and both looked away. The steady heat pressing on their senses was creeping around their necks, slowly entwining the red string, _over and over again. _Levi's eyes traveled up north to the sun-kissed face, hard features with a small touch of vulnerability, and eyes so blue even sky should've been ashamed for its color, because Erwin's… _Erwin's were too blue, too perfect, too wild, just too much. _

And Levi found himself drowning in his own feelings, in those eyes, in Erwin, and if it wasn't for the blond, he would probably lose his cool, but Erwin, for the motherfucking god, opened his mouth and whispered so silently that it could've been even his own ears imagining things, it could've been just his fantasy, except it wasn't.

"It's a little… tight in here. I don't know what is it with your comrades but they seem to have the power to stop in the most inappropriate places." He pointed to the closet door, where, just the opposite of the spot they were hiding, stood Ronny with Olulo, laughing and talking about some unnecessary shit. And Levi sighed.

"No shit, the fate is against me." He shrugged and found Erwin staring at him, so he gestured to his face and hissed, "Why are you staring at me like a fucking toddler at his favorite lollipop?" But with that small space there was, he accidentally bumped his palm with Erwin's shoulder, and immediately, his eyes followed, ears turning pink, and mouth twisting into a grimace again. Erwin moved closer, just an inch, just a tiny bit, but it caused Levi's breath to go on a fucking holiday as it involuntary hitched in his throat. Shit shit shit. Erwin smiled, but it wasn't the polite smile he was giving him earlier, this one was way more needy, feral, wild, and untamed.

"So adorable." His lips kissed the air with those words and a jolt of lightning ran down Levi's spine.

"Fucking Ronny with fucking Olulo still fucking talking when there's not enough fucking room to move, not enough fucking air to breathe and you fucking stink like a motherfucking old man." Levi started, trying to move away from Erwin who looked profoundly amused by Levi's behavior. After a while, which wasn't longer than a few seconds, but still, Levi thought it lasted for a whole _fucking _year, he managed to turn his back on Erwin. Sighing in relief at first, just to come to a conclusion that his move wasn't one of the smartest at last.

"Levi… This is worse." Erwin sighed, his voice almost as thick as the air surrounding them, yet the volume of it was muted, and Levi had to turn his head to hear him.

"What are you- Oi, Erwin. Did you change your mind about carrying a gun in your pocket? Because if I were you, I'd pray for it to be a _fucking gun!_" Levi turned his head a little more, glaring right into those beautiful orbs where the oceans seemed to revolt again, the tension in his eyes made Levi's knees go all wobbly and weak.

"I don't have a gun. I'm sorry."

Levi felt the hot breath touch his naked nape, and the forcefully built wall started to crack little by little. He looked at Erwin who smiled apologetically but, truth be told, didn't look apologetic at all.

"I hate you, Erwin."

"You don't."

"No."

Levi agreed, his voice a broken whisper, Erwin's hand on his shoulder, those long fingers slowly tapping a melody against his skin. Somewhere, music began to play, and despite the closed door, it bounced into the corridor, creeping silently against the walls, as if desiring to evoke the atmosphere, as if desiring to steal breath directly from Levi's lungs. It was Ronny and Olulo who had left their previous post without Levi or Erwin noticing. Those fingers, those long fingers unconsciously tapped the same rhythm as Raven's heart, provoking.

_Bury all your secrets in my skin, come away with innocence and leave me with my sins. The air around me still feels like a cage, and love is just a camouflage for what resembles rage again._

He could feel Erwin's lips slowly brushing against his neck, fingers gripping his shoulder tightly, he could feel the hardness in blond's pants. He could feel his breath getting more violent, and suddenly, he couldn't take it anymore.

"Erwin, Ronny left, you have to go." He flung open the closet door, and almost fell out of it when he tried to escape the man, over and over again. Trying to catch all his sanity, he pointed to the stairs.

"Go, they mustn't find you here. I'll call in the evening." He promised and turned on his heel, and disappeared in his room, not even turning at Erwin. His head was spinning, his body was burning, and something deep in his mind longed, screamed to open the door and come back, to fucking come back to him. But Levi wasn't listening. He just didn't want to listen.

*/*/*

At eight o'clock in the evening, Levi signed up for his usual live broadcast, but this time he looked for one particular person. Erwin. And as he had promised, he pressed a button to start a video call, his heart playing a melody on his ribs, as if they were a metallophone. With a deep breath, he gazed straight into the face of the man who answered the call with a slight smile on his face.

"Levi, I'm glad you called." Erwin said genuinely. He wore an ordinary dark blue bathrobe, his hair still moist from the shower, and,_ oh god_, those messy strands pointing to every possible direction like a sparrow's nest. It was cute.

"I never break my promises." One austere answer just before the silence fell between them. Levi sat on the bed with a laptop in his lap, his face lit by a small lamp standing on the bedside table.

"So ..." Erwin began.

"So how do you want me to help the charity?" Levi severely interrupted him, his eyes on the monitor, on the face he didn't want to look at, and at the same time, he didn't want to look at anything else.

"Levi, do you really want to help? What convinced you so suddenly?" The blond asked.

"Shut up, I'll help you, but I have a condition." And Levi again ignored the effort for starting a conversation.

"I'm listening." Erwin gave up.

"You'll tell me everything, your plans, how you learned about Gross and what your intent is because I don't even trust you have that huge nose between your eyes, you asshole," Levi grunted.

Erwin smiled at that.

"Of course, I'll tell you everything when we meet in person. On Sunday evening, get to the west gate of the city, there's a small place where we'll have some peace and quiet. And there is something I want to show you." So Erwin didn't give up on the conversation, he proved himself to be a smooth hella motherfucker.

"You mean another church?" But Levi wasn't impressed.

"Something like that." And Erwin was a fucking secret.

Two hours later, Levi found himself listening to Erwin's narrative, and for once he felt very relaxed, as if someone was telling him a good night's tale. Maybe that's why he put the laptop down next to him and lay down on his side, his elbow resting in the cushions while his palm supported his head. And even though Levi still didn't speak much, Erwin seemed pleased with his listening abilities. It was a pleasant and non-violent conversation that left Levi unprepared, his walls unconstructed, his attention subdued only to that deep voice.

"... and then she brought me biscuits so she could break up with me in front of the whole class. And give me those fucking biscuits." Hearing Erwin curse brought Levi to full attention again, his almost closed eyes shifted open again and he stared into the blond's face, quirking up his eyebrows.

" No shit, big Erwin Smith got dumped in front of the whole class? I'd record that so I could fuck you up for the rest of your life." Levi murmured softly, his lips slightly raised up in a hint of amusement, and Erwin smiled, too, the old scars apparently healed.

"I can imagine that. But then I would ask you out, and you would stop doing it."

"You wouldn't even spare a glance at me in high school, Blondie, I wasn't exactly the prototype of popularity. I bet you were exactly the kind everyone wanted, had a million fans, was a captain of the school team, and you still had good grades." Levi scoffed, there was a slight sort of acidity in his voice.

"Yes, you are right, but I was also the chairman of the class." Erwin actually laughed out loud when he saw Levi's disgusted expression. It was a perfect sound to Levi's ears. "I was very busy."

"Tch, you are a madman. I was exactly the opposite of you, I fought with people, the principal scolded me a million times, had conditional expulsion, and such shit. You wouldn't like me."

"I find you attractive now, I believe it would be the same in high school."

"I doubt it."

"Levi ..."

"Yeah?"

"I like what I see. I wouldn't have come to you for live porn and masturbation if I didn't like you. And I wouldn't be having an erection now just from looking at you laying in your bed."

"You have a boner?" Levi's eyes locked with Erwin's. "I'm gonna regret this." He whispered slowly.

"Regret what, Levi?"

Levi looked into Erwin's eyes, blithely smiling, and got lost in the mist of the endless blue and freedom the blond had so shrewdly offered. Maybe this could work, and Levi could find a safe place in those eyes. And maybe this was a turning point of some sort.

The silent humming of their conversation slowly dissolved as both of them drew a long breath to fill their lungs, as if trying to find some composure again, and Levi suddenly felt like a lone wolf on a hunt. He frowned and moved one hand down his own chest to catch Erwin's attention. And bit by bit, he wandered over every ounce of his body, and it burned.

.

"What are you doing, Levi?" Erwin asked when Levi's fingers brushed against his crotch in a clear, and arousing manner, giving it a soft, yet distinctive squeeze. The blond sitting in his chair on the other side of the city gasped so suddenly in made Levi smirk, and he squeezed again, not leaving the place he decided to occupy.

"What do you think, fucker?"

His hand was actually sweaty and he felt fucking nervous. This was an unexpected turn for him, to actually tease the hell out of the blond like this, even though he had done that to many on his video streams. Was it a good idea or the worst of them all? In the end, Levi didn't know, he didn't fucking care. And just then he pushed the hem of his pajama pants down, sneaking his hand into the universe of his desires to grab his half hard cock, and a velvet whisper fell out of his mouth while his sweet, piercing eyes tickled Erwin on his sun-kissed skin. That information made a mess in his total system, not allowing him to disobey the power of Levi's words.

"Touch yourself, too."

And so Erwin did.

He stood up from the chair and drew a path with his fingertips down his flat stomach, under the fabric of his pants. Levi's breath got stuck in his throat and he felt as if there was not enough air around him, as if he was choking with his own emotions, and whenever he sought comfort, he looked up into the blue oceans of eyes full of infinite depths and lost himself in Erwin's distinctive magic. Although the blond wasn't even close to the raven, his gaze was soothing and hard at the same time, his smile caressed all the doubts away, and created a safe place for everyone around him. He had such power, safety, interwoven with a fabric of wildness, which wasn't restrained even by the deep moon-like eyes that were watching him back violently. Erwin had always found his way, with little bits, with experience, and without the need for much pressure. He stole parts of Levi's soul like the sun dancing with rainy droplets in the chilly evening. What could a tiny amount of rain possibly do with such an infinite power? Over time, the sun would melt all the rain away and in empty eyes of a quiet protestant boy with dark hair, there'd be hope.

Only a few seconds later, Erwin's pants fell to the ground, enveloping his ankles in a mute understanding of future acts. Eyes locked on the screen, on Levi, those long fingers touched his own abdomen, like butterfly wings dancing on the skin, like a splash of ink pounding into his body, teasing back, and Levi hated it, he loved it. The heat of the blond's touch was haunting him in his mind, and the throbbing in his ears got even worse. Erwin wasn't even there with the raven and yet his presence was all over him. The two exposed manhoods, painfully hard, and so far away from one another, just the internet video call connected them briefly. Erwin slowly seized his huge length, allowing Levi to see every little detail as he moved closer to the camera because he wanted him to see it. And with the trembling exhalation that had fallen from the blond's lips, Levi's hips responded in a passionate motion to the need of the other man, he started bucking into his own palm. His hand began to move more erratically. And before they both realized the deeds they were messing up with, the rooms were filled with their needed sighs, which gradually, and slowly escalated into a hot mess of uncontrollable moans. Levi wanted to escape, again. At the same time, he longed for Erwin to be there with him closer, close. Erwin longed for the same proximity, without the thought of escaping, the blond closed his eyes then and leaned against the desk to find some support, quietly panting as he stroked the erection in a slow and teasing way. He watched the raven work on his assigned task for a little while, but just when he saw Levi was getting closer to the edge, he grabbed his own cock more firmly and started pumping violently with the same rhythm as the other man, his eyes never leaving the screen of the computer. And Levi led Erwin through it all with a tender solicitude, with undisclosed desire, with so much obscenity the blond had no other choice than to drown in it. In the sweet sight of the smaller man. The raven was the first one to reach the desired point. Arching his back in an almost painful way, he came with a high pitched groan, his sperm covering both his hand and stomach. The blond had his blue gaze glued on him the whole time, not being able to look away. And now he felt like he was about to lose it, throwing his head back he let out a heavy moan filled with Levi's name. He wanted more. And then, suddenly hearing Levi speak with that raspy and sleepy voice, Erwin lost it and came heavily into his own palm and on the floor, his other hand gripping the edge of the desk so fiercely his knuckles turned white.

"Ughh, Erwin …" Levi whined silently, his eyelids heavy with tiredness.

"You're adorable, Levi."

"Fuck you, I need to take a shower, I'm disgusting."

And a sign popped up on Erwin's screen once again, bringing back the first memory the man had with Levi.

_The video call has ended. _

*/*/*

On Sunday evening at the west gate, there were not many people around. Not surprisingly, these streets were dangerous, no one could be sure what was lurking in the shadows around them, and no one was safe. Levi knew for he grew up in a similar place. Nowadays, however, only a few courageous ones walked outside the city gates, there was nothing to see there, at most a few ruined buildings, a few churches, including the one where the two men had spent the night together, and then the open sea.

A single venture shone brightly into the gray gloom of deserted streets, and Levi slowly headed toward it. To hide his possible social status, he wore black skinny jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt and a dark gray leather jacket with a hood that he pulled over his head as he entered the western tone. He had a holster around his hips that hid two daggers, their presence comforting Levi. He walked into the restaurant and looked around, at first glance it was an ordinary Diner that provided shelter to the homeless during the evening. A few of them lay on benches or on the table without buying anything, and no one asked them to leave, it was just how things were here, no one cared. Levi walked past them without sparring them a single glance, his eyes fixed on the figure in the corner of the room sitting by the windows. His golden hair glowing into the faintness of the surrounding light, and even though he wore inconspicuous and ordinary clothes - a smart boy - Levi thought how much he didn't belong in this place. And how much it was visible. On the other hand, he himself fitted in as if he actually belonged there all along, it was ridiculous how much different they actually were. And something in Levi's chest tightened with anxiety he didn't want to feel. This couldn't work, Erwin was too much.

Yet despite his outrageous stream of thoughts, his footsteps shortened the distance between him and Erwin, and when he finally sat in a chair opposite him and looked into his eyes, he realized how strongly opposing personalities could actually attract each other.

"Good evening, Levi. Want something?" Erwin greeted him with a fleeting smile on his face, not quite reaching his eyes, which remained cold and serious, as well as the subject they were to discuss today. Levi nodded in greeting and grabbed the menu, quickly scanning over a selection of drinks and food. Erwin had a large mug of black coffee in front of him of which Levi curled his nose in disgust and ordered black tea and a burger. Erwin ordered a pizza.

"I don't plan to run around, so tell me how you learned about Gross and what you know. What are you?" Levi started upright, his eyes tearing into Erwin's, who returned the strong look in peace. Both men were extremely dangerous, each in their own original form, but it was not good to play with either of them. And they both knew about it, respecting the silent border of danger between them. They respected the danger the other could be.

"He was supposed to be my business partner, the cooperation of our companies would help both sides, so I made an appointment with him. Of course, I heard he wasn't quite honest and fair, so I started searching for something illegal. I invited him to dinner with intend of getting him drunk, because I was well informed about his liking for good alcohol. It loosened his tongue and he started talking about the harlots in this city. Especially about that particular one he had had lately, and I figured there was probably more evil than I originally expected, so I asked and drunken Mr. Gross told me about the man who looked exactly like you and was called Levi. That's why I called and wanted to make an appointment with you, and that's why I sent him behind bars. Honestly, his behavior disgusted me, I started searching much harder and I suppose, you already know the outcome." Erwin elaborated, gesticulating gently with his hand, eyes never leaving Levi's face. And the raven felt he wasn't telling the whole truth, but he nodded anyway.

"Fine. So you convicted him of many other crimes just because he fucked me and my ass was bleeding because of it? You know, Erwin, I've experienced much worse things than just this shit." Levi bluntly said, narrowing his eyes a little.

"You can take it that way, it upset me. And I definitely didn't want to work with that person anymore, it would take a huge toll on my own business."

"Tch! I didn't ask for your fucking help." Levi mumbled dryly.

"I know." Erwin nodded, his hard features unreadable, stoic, hidden. Levi sighed, pressing his index finger and thumb on the bridge of his nose, tired.

"Tch, I mean... thanks." He looked away.

"You're welcome, Levi." Erwin smiled.

Orders arrived, and both men fell silent while they ate. The food wasn't that good, but it wasn't the worst, and Levi found that the pleasant feeling in his stomach wasn't caused by the over-greased burger or cheap black tea. He pushed his thoughts deep in the abyss of his ass and put down the cutlery when he finally finished. Erwin followed a moment later.

"You still haven't told me who you are." Levi reminded him briefly.

"I'm Erwin Smith." Was the blond head with hair like the dog's piss fucking kidding him?

"No fuck, I wouldn't know." Levi rolled his eyes and shook his head, pushing aside the desire to smack him or to smack himself with the greatest of facepalms ever created.

"I am not that important, I can always be replaced by someone like me, only when I can, I want to help humanity. I want to know more, to know this world more." This time his eyes shone with unwavering curiosity and a desire for knowledge, and this time Levi knew he was telling the truth.

As they were about to leave, Erwin insisted on paying the orders, and Levi told him to fuck off three times. But Erwin did not listen and paid for the two men before Levi could stop him, nevertheless. And Levi tried to look pissed but, truth be told, he wasn't.

"Seriously, Erwin. You're not my fucking sugar daddy." Levi growled in disbelief, shaking his head and shoving his hands in the pockets of the jacket.

"I wanted to treat you since you treated me with the video call the other day. You didn't want me to pay for your services so I found a way how to give something back to you." Erwin murmured while walking towards the empty gate. And as they left the city, the darkness covered them both in its thick duvet.

"It wasn't a service, fucker. I just wanted to jack off."

"Yes yes, Levi. Let's do it again sometime."

"Fuck no."

"Fuck yes."

"Since when you're swearing like that. It doesn't suit you."

"We're here." Erwin didn't respond, instead, he interrupted their little chit chat and pointed a finger to one of the buildings standing by the shore. A lighthouse old and rusty, abandoned.

"That's not a church." Levi pointed out the obvious, and it made Erwin smile a little.

"It is, indeed, not. Let's go inside, there's something I want to show you that might actually convince you to follow me." And with that being said, he slowly made his way inside the building with Levi already following his steps.

The ocean was lively, waves crashing against the cliff and splashing water everywhere, the salty smell in the air was somehow calming and Levi found himself enjoying these little details as he climbed up the stairs to the top floor of the lighthouse. The cold wind brushed his hair every once in a while, making it messy, but he couldn't care less, his focus was on the broad shoulders of the man in front of him, who silently led him to the only room that didn't seem to be devastated by the power of nature. They passed by a tiny tree growing from the concrete floor, a few branches that were covering the walls almost entirely, and a few weird looking mushrooms stuck in the wooden roof that was partially missing. The whole building was just a step away from collapsing.

"Here. Come on." Erwin unlocked the door with the rusty key that someone left behind in the keyhole, forgotten, and entered the room. He grabbed a flashlight and turned it on, pointing the small circle of light towards the desk. The place was dusty and smelled like mold but the desk itself seemed to be clean, as if someone had used it recently. Levi halted in the middle of the room and looked over at Erwin, a question in his grey eyes.

"There's a notebook filled with notes from sailors who had been sailing in the unknown waters. It's old, maybe fifty years or so, maybe more, some of the notes were very hard to read and even harder to decrypt. It's a language I don't know so it took me some time to get through it to actually understand what they were writing about, and Levi… " He cocked his head up, eyes shining so brightly it almost blinded the smaller man, and a wicked smile quirked his lips. He had never seen the man like that, so excited, so vulnerable, so full of childish curiosity. Levi stayed silent, ready to listen to what Erwin was about to say.

"I wanna sail to the other side of the ocean to find out what's living there."

"They say there's nothing there, Erwin."

"Yes, yes, they do! But they're wrong. And I need to prove that they're wrong." Erwin looked like a madman again, and Levi felt a shiver running down his spine, the crazy stare he was giving him was something he didn't expect at all. He frowned.

"And why do you need my help exactly?" He asked then, his eyebrows rising up for a change. Erwin coughed lightly, partially trying to get some attention, but mostly, he was just a dickhead.

"I need your voice, Levi. And your face, your shield, your connections. In order to help the ones in need, they need to trust me to sign for a helping program that I prepared for them. As disappointed with the current government as they are, I doubt they would even consider the possibilities. I need you to show them I truly mean it. Of course, you will be there to help with some ideas, programs, and other stuff, too. It's a full business partnership, you will help me, I will help your people." Erwin said solemnly, zet again, there was this slight glint in his eyes that told Levi he wasn't saying the whole truth, but this time, he didn't nod and instead, he confronted him.

"Don't bullshit me, Erwin. This is not the entire truth, I told you to be fucking honest with me or else I won't help you with anything. So, spit it out, you little piece of garbage shit." Levi didn't know the man very well but seeing his eyes widen a little with surprise, he knew he hit the most vulnerable spot Erwin tried to hide. And Levi saw right through it. But that wouldn't be Erwin if he admitted his loss so easily, and that's exactly why he said what he said, and took the wind out of Levi's sails.

"I plan to overthrow the government."

The lighthouse fell silent, just the distant hum of the sea and the sorrowful howl of the wind interrupted the forcefully created stillness. Levi desperately gasped for more air, shocked by the blunt and bold answer Erwin gave him. There were no traces of lies in his words.

"What the fuck?" He asked while Erwin handed over the notebook, showing him one certain page. Levi's eyes dropped and scanned over the notebook, brows furrowing more and more with each passing second.

"What the actual fuck?" And this time, he meant something else.


End file.
